Sweetly Morbid
by iefery
Summary: (Set after the events of the game) It takes a drunken Zack, a whole army of angry beer-bellied cops, some random tracking-device, a group of people with weird guns, and a forest infested with wolves for Rachel to realize that life probably still sucked pretty badly. Zack/Ray slow-burn romance. Rated M for gore, language, and mature scenes.
1. Chapter 1

**Curious Thoughts (Part I)**

The streets were always crowded, no matter when Isaac Foster decided to leave home. Everywhere he went, there would be crowds and crowds of people roaming about, walking and talking in joyous harmony in company of their friends and family. From the top of the building he was sitting on, he could see all kinds of people apreciating their Saturday evening, people of every type: be it big or small, old or young- everyone, _everyone_ looked happy.

Happy enough to irritate him.

With a snort, the young man took a sip from his soda can and resumed staring at the crowd, all the while thinking of various ways to brutally murder each and every one of them. He wasn't one to _hate_ his victims, quite the opposite actually... It was just that somehow, the excess of happiness drove him mad, mad enough to actually swing his scythe one or two times unecessarily.

His eyes shot back to his weapon, still stained with crimson. It wasn't that long ago since he killed a person, and yet to him, it felt like an eternity had passed... annoyingly.

Zack was obsessed with human emotion, he needed it like he needed air. He didn't care what it was, _any_ kind of emotion was enough, any.

But with the current situation and him being a well-known fugitive, it has become nearly impossible for him to resume his man-hunting sessions, not when every single person in the city felt the need to follow crowds- now _that_ was mighty inconvenient.

Even so, he had been able to corner one or two reckless people in dark alleys when he had the chance. It wasn't that often, actually... it was rare, extremely rare, but he was satisfied with that much.

Not that he had a choice.

For the past few months he had been forced to hide and conceal himself in the shadows due to high-security alert in the city. Police was everywhere looking for him and the young girl he had supposedly taken hostage.  
Wanted signs were on TV, outside, with the information going as far as being broadcasted even in other nearby cities- he was looked for everywhere without fail.

But that didn't stop him from going outside whenever he wanted. Zack wasn't the most graceful guy out there, but he had the ability to conceal himself if he wanted to. He could even fade with the crowd if he deemed it necessary... even if that was hard in itself.

He stood out too much, way too much; he figured. And it wasn't like there were other fugitives wearing bandages all over their body.

Grunting, Zack crushed the can with his palm, making the last few drops stain his bandaged fingers. There was nothing more annoying than restraint, he _loathed_ it, despised it so badly that no words could describe his hidden anger.

He was literally in a whole city full of happy-go-lucky people, and he hadn't been able to kill more than he wished to.

 _'Frustrating as hell!'_ He cursed mentally as he stood up and threw the crushed can towards the crowd of people, which landed non-too-gracefully on the head of a random young man.

The look of utter confusion and pain marked on his face was enough to make Zack laugh slightly. Well now, even if he wasn't capable to kill as freely as he pleased, he was still capable to hurt one or two people from a distance- at least.

His smile disappeared though when he saw the man's female companion rub his injured head soothingly, with a gentleness he had never seen before. The look in her eyes showed genuine concern, along with something else, something Zack couldn't quite decipher. He saw the man close his eyes then smile when his... girlfriend, he figured, kissed his forehead affectionately. Resulting in both of them holding hands and continuing their walk.

That sight gave Zack a pang on his chest for an unknown reason and it annoyed him even more.

But it also made him see the crowd in a new, curious light.

Upon closer inspection, there were more than just a few couples around. Actually, over half of the people that evening were with their significant other, doing things that would've made the young serial killer barf in disgust.

Zack was obsessed with human emotion, but love was foreign and odd to him.

Even so, curiosity had him look at the happy people go by, giving him the oddest thoughts...

 **To Be Continued...**


	2. Chapter 2

**Curious Thoughts (Part II)**

Night came quickly, and there was still no sign of Zack.

Rachel Gardner looked out the window, momentarily leaving her eyes off the book she had been reading for the past few days. It wasn't uncommon for her to spend sleepless nights waiting for Zack, actually, it was more of a habit than anything else. Day after day, the now-14-year-old had to be patient enough to stay up late and see that the murderer would come home safe and sound. It became a responsibility, and she had grown to loathe it- due to the stress it caused her.

Ray cared for Zack, that much was obvious... but said man wasn't aware of her feelings, or didn't care... one of the two.

"Annoying..." she whispered to herself while finally deciding to wait near the window. "I always have to worry about him getting caught, yet he keeps roaming about at night, knowing full well of the consenquences."

Her blue eyes squinted as she tried to find an approaching shadow, her lips red from being bitten one or two times. She sighed once more as she desperately tried to remain calm, a feat she had lost ever since moving in with Zack, in their isolated, abandonned apartment building on the other side of the city.

She had changed for the better, that, she was sure. Zack told her everyday of how much more 'bearable' she had become lately, to openly show her frustration and speak up about certain things, and it flattered her, genuinely.

But despite that, she still felt the need to die, somehow. It became the core of her very being, that promise they shared meant everything- it meant the _world_ to her, and she absolutely did not want to let it go.

No matter what.

Even if he were to get caught again, this time it would be her turn to _come_ for _**him**_. And not the other way around.

Why? Well, simply put, she was tired of waiting, tired of all the fake small promises he made to make it up to her, tired of all the times he asked her to smile- smile for him, simply because he wanted to see it, like a jewel or a pretty toy.

She was far, far too tired for any of those things again, and she had more than enough of how he was so obviously stalling for more time.

She had her emotions back, not in their entiriety, but she had them back regardless.

And so it was grand time for him to take her, like he had sworn to.

 _'But he doesn't feel like it...'_ Rachel thought bitterly, looking down at the wooden floor. _'He keeps asking me to smile, and that's what Im doing... but...'_

Was there really a reason? Was there really a promise at all?

She wasn't sure, but she remembered- _vividly,_ of his opinion concerning liars.

And that was enough to give her an ounce of hope, if only a little- despite her frustration, that he will keep his promise and end her life.

And if he didn't respect their oath then-

 ***CRASH***

"What the-"

Rachel's thoughts were interrupted immediately when Zack kicked the door open, startling her.

"Ray... Pack your shit, we're leavin'."

 **To be continued...**


	3. Chapter 3

**Curious Thoughts (Part III)**

"Ray... pack your shit, we're leavin'."

It was so sudden and quick that Rachel stood paralyzed for a minute or two, incapable of thinking properly.

She did _not_ see him coming, and that was truly unsettling for her...

"Zack, what in the world are you..."

"No time to explain, Ray!" He practically shouted all the while staggering suspiciously, "Just... Just grab what ya' need and let's get movin'! If we don't... if we-" he stopped momentarily to cover his mouth with a bandaged hand and dash towards the bathroom.

... Which eventually followed to the sound of him vomitting.

 _'Well, this isn't uncommon...'_ she thought, mildly impressed while peeking at his slouched form, a worried look on her face. _'But still, what is wrong with him?'_

As Zack kept on throwing up the last remains of his previous meal, Rachel believed she heard the sounds of police sirens getting near to their apartment. Alarmed, the young girl ran towards the living room to look out the window, spotting a good dozen of police cars coming dangerously close.

With wide eyes, Rachel called with a hint of worry;

"Hey... The police is coming..." she spoke, not bothering to turn to look at the serial killer, whom she was sure had finished his business... and stood behind her.

A sigh was all that it took to make her jump.

"Fuck, and here I was hoping they'd take more time..." he muttered angrily, sounding so different than usual. It was a surprise and also another thing to worry about later for Rachel, because never before did _her_ Zack act that way.

Never.

She wanted to turn and argue in a desperate way to form a plan, but the 20 year-old had been quicker to act. In a swift move, Zack grabbed Ray by the waist and pulled her close to him, enough for their skin to touch. The act had the blonde look up in surprise, but the man she was staring at didn't seem to react apropriately.

Actually, he grinned.

"Guess we'll just have to disappear again, huh." He said with a chuckle, seemingly enjoying this new turn of events. Rachel did not find the strength in her to protest, because as soon as she opened her mouth to speak- did a familiar smell reached her nostrils.

 _Alcohol._

Zack was drunk.

The 'pure' serial killer she had worshipped this whole time- was _drunk._

That was yet again, something to worry about later.

Visibly annoyed now, Rachel furrowed her brows as Zack grabbed her petite waist to throw her on his shoulder; carrying the pre-teen like a sack of potatoes all the while ignoring her huffs of protest. His hand stayed on the small of her back to keep her secured and in place, knowing he'll have to run and jump to places nobody could see.

Besides, she was tiny compared to him; therefore it made things a lot easier.

"Hold on tight, Ray! It's gonna get bumpy," Zack said whilst staggering, still quite dizzy. Rachel held on to his shirt for dear life as he fiercely shattered the window to pieces with his fist, wasting no time to jump towards a nearby tree. He managed to land on a steady branch, but hadn't been fast enough for the police not to see them.

"Stop right there, Isaac Foster!" A policeman yelled, gun pointed at the young serial-killer. "Hand over the girl, or else we'll shoot you down!"

"What was that?!" Zack yelled back, his voice hoarse; "Didn't hear ya."

Annoyance and rage were visible on the policeman's face, and yet he repeated himself still;  
"I said, hand over the girl!" He yelled, louder than before, Zack's lips formed an 'o' of understanding as he cleaned his right ear with his pinky.

There was a certain glint in his yellow eye as he grinned.

"And what if I say no?" He spoke, sounding every bit confident.

The policeman looked at him incredulously, this wasn't the answer he had expected.

Another officer next to him spoke in a low tone, "Chief, why don't we just shoot him down?" He suggested, gun still aimed towards Zack along with his men. The chief in question shook his head, sweating visibly.

"We can't risk shooting the little girl, that devil could very well use her as a shield." He whispered back, then bit his lip in anger. "If you could aim for a body part, anything that is nowhere near her- we might have a chance destabilise him."

"Roger that."

Zack had witnessed the exchange between the two policemen and snorted, looking amused. Rachel, on the other hand, grew worried and impatient.

"Zack, what are you doing just standing here? We should run!" She hissed while wiggling her legs. Zack rolled his eyes and pinched her small, bare thigh, effectively making her gasp and jump lightly.

"They won't shoot when I'm carrying you like this," he explained while shamelessly tapping her bottom, "don't you worry, I went through that shit countless of times."

Ignoring his hand teasingly smacking her butt, Rachel began thinking if he had actually taken hostages before, and if this kind of behavior was going to be common. Either way, his confidence was a bit reassuring.

The chief paled as he saw Zack's previous 'teasing interaction' with Rachel's butt and immediately assumed the worst.

"Dear lord, don't tell me he is _that_ kind of monster..." he spoke to himself, feeling a surge of sympathy for Rachel. "Poor little girl..." he cleared his throat, with a new resolve in mind and shook his head, shouting with new-found fury. "You beast! Unhand her right this instant! We _will_ shoot you down unless you give us the child!"

Zack giggled, "Oh yeah? Well..." he teasingly answered as he turned around and started shaking his booty, "try and catch me if you can! Assholes!"

With that said and done, and while taking advantage of the policemen's shock; Zack bolted. Faster than anyone deemed possible, all the while laughing hysterically, his voice echoing in the night.

"Get him! Aim for the legs!" The chief ordered as they got back in their cars with the intention to chase him down.

XxX

Rachel gasped as she felt Zack's bony shoulder slam again and collide with her abdomen as he jumped roughly on the ground, running at an intense speed. The sound of police sirens chasing them and getting closer didn't seem to bother the serial killer in the slightest, actually, he was having a _blast._

The road ahead was so dark and full of trees, it was clear that he had a plan to hide in the forest, that way the cars wouldn't be able to chase after them. It was a smart move, Rachel admitted, but also quite dumb; considering how dangerous the woods were at night.

Still though, she doubted she would be in any danger with Zack.

Ironically.

 _'I shouldn't be relieved... I should be outraged.'_ She thought to herself, wincing again at Zack's roughness with her and how recklessly he ran. _'He promised me that I will die, that he'll kill me. And yet why am I here, being dragged around like some kind of baggage?'_

She hoped, sincerely, that the day would end without casualties. But just as she prayed for them to reach the forest did a police car come into view, with a man sitting on the edge of his car window, pointing the gun towards Zack's direction.

"Zack, watch out!" Rachel warned him while pulling on his shirt to get his attention. The serial killer turned and grinned sharply as he avoided the bullets that were meant for him.

"Gutsy, they don't care about what's gonna happen to ya, eh?" He laughed.

 _'When is he going to sober up...'_

Frustrated beyond compare, the policeman who had fired the bullets tsked and looked at his partner on the driver seat, "I can't use the rifle with that girl being so close, hand over the magnum."

"What? You sure you can do a clean shot?!" The officer asked as he gave him the gun, worry in his face.

"We won't be able to chase him in the forest, too many trees. We don't have a choice, I'll try my luck."

The driver nodded and sped up, getting closer and closer to the chasing duo. His partner loaded the 44 magnum and concetrated deeply, aiming for the fugitive's leg. It wasn't an easy feat, considering he moved like a wild, untamed beast. But it wasn't impossible.. and he had a good aim.

Rachel felt drops of sweat on her temple as she looked at the policeman who was aiming yet again towards Zack. They were almost there- almost in the safety of the woods...

"Zack!" Rachel shouted again, this time warning him clearly.

Zack knew what was coming, but didn't falter. They were right in front of the woods, _they were so close._

Determined, Zack sped up and jumped within the dark entrance quickly enough to disappear.

But not fast enough to avoid the bullet that had pierced his right leg.

As soon as they lost the duo from their sight, all cars stopped near the dark and mysterious barrier of trees. Defeated.

The police chief exited his car with a solemn expression, very irritated at their loss. They had been very close to capturing Isaac Foster and saving that girl, but for some reason, they failed.

"Damn it!" He cursed as he loudly kicked on his car, "he got away, again!"

"Chief..." came the lame reply of his partner, who looked defeated as well, yet still kept on hoping. "We can't just give up, let's go follow them!" He suggested.

But the chief only shook his head in reply, "It's dark, it'll be almost impossible for us to find them. Also..." he pointed towards the woods with a movement of his chin, "there are wolves in there, no guarantee we'll be safe."

"W-wolves?" One of them stuttered, "Are you sure, chief?"

He shrugged, "I've been told, I'm not sure but it's a possibility. I just hope that girl will be fine." He sighed, putting his gun back. The previous policeman who had shot Zack cleared his throat and waved towards their Chief, effectively gaining his attention.

"What?" He spoke irritably.

The man shrunk but still kept himself straight, "um, sir, I wanted to inform you that, er.. I shot him."

"What?"

"I uh, Isaac Foster... H-he's wounded, sir..." this time, he looked down; unsure why his chief frightened him so. Said chief approached the man, brows furrowed as he asked him;

"Where did you hit him?"

"On his right leg sir, it should be enough to slow him down." He informed him, then pointed at the entrance of the woods, where a visible stain of blood lied on a nearby tree, it was the spot he had caught him on.

The chief inspected that stain and touched it, the blood was still warm and wet, it was definitely fresh, definitely Isaac Foster's blood.

With that, he smiled.

"Officer Biggs, send a report to the police station, ask them about the perimeter. This forest shouldn't be too big, if we're lucky; we'll be able to get him tomorrow morning." He said confidently. Officer Biggs nodded then dashed towards his car to inform the station. The chief's partner raised his eyebrows and asked;

"But what if they'll be gone by tomorrow?"

The chief smiled, "Foster's wounded, there's no way he could go so far. They'll be most likely spending the night in the forest due to his weakness. By tomorrow, if the wolves don't get him- we will."

That answer was enough to reassure the officer, who turned to talk to his men about the report. As soon as the chief was alone, did obscure thoughts torment his mind.

 _'And if by chance, he really isn't there by tomorrow morning... Then he might really be a monster, just as we thought.'_

 **To be continued...**


	4. Chapter 4

**Curious Thoughts (Part IV)**

After their insane run and a few unpleasant encounters with tree branches; Zack suddenly decided it was grand time to roll and give in from dizziness. With a grunt, the young man fell due to exhaustion all the while grabbing his shorter companion to protect her from the fall, making sure to cradle her in his arms before landing non-too-gracefully on the muddy ground.

Rachel held into Zack as she felt the world spinning around them, closing her eyes shut to avoid getting dizzy herself. The firm hold the serial killer had on her was surprising, considering he still reeked of alcohol, and was most likely still suffering from its effects... Nevertheless, it wasn't all that important at the moment.

His wound was her priority.

After a painful landing, Rachel attempted to prompt herself up and break free from Zack's tight hold, but barely managed to move an inch.

"Zack," she called, feeling somewhat uncomfortable with her body being pressed firmly on top of his, "Zack please let go of me, I have to see to your wound." She spoke seriously, not showing any sign of emotion. Obviously, there was nothing to worry about, since it was _Zack_ after all. He went through far worse than anyone could imagine, but...

She was still worried, it couldn't be helped.

His reponse though, peeved her for some reason; as he lazily opened his right eye to stare at her, his lips curving into a smirk.

"Trying to escape, huh?" He joked, not letting go of her waist. "Too bad I don't feel like letting you go." He sighed as he fully closed his eye to snore softly, visibly tired of all the action. Rachel furrowed her brows and poked him on the side, making him stir and yet again, open his eye to look down at her.

His right eye certainly did look like it was constantly glaring.

"Let me go now, Zack." Rachel said seriously, not breaking eye-contact. She had hoped their intense run wouldve sobered him up, but it seemed as though it only made the young man even more delirious.

Zack's response to Rachel's command was a snort.

"Why are ya naggin', Ray? It's just a scratch, you'll take a look at it tomorrow." He muttered as he stired slightly to make himself more comfortable, "I'm tired, let's sleep for now."

Not having it, Rachel freed her arm to pinch Zack's nose, making the serial killer look at her.

"Let's not." Came the stoic answer. "If you want to sleep, do it after I see to your 'scratch'."

Seeing how Ray wasn't going to let the issue go, Zack rolled his eyes and loosened his hold on her; letting the petite girl break free and crawl down to put his wounded leg on her thighs.

He resisted the urge to whine at the loss of her warmth, she had been such a comfortable pillow.

"... It's not just a 'scratch' Zack," Rachel said as she rolled his pants further up, examining the wound. "The bullet was powerful enough to give you one nasty hole, you're bleeding like crazy!" Her voice barely held her usual composure at the last statement, this time looking visibly worried.

Zack waved it off casually, he wasn't feeling pain somehow. It was odd.

"Doesn't hurt." Came the slow answer.

"You're losing too much blood! We have to stop that." Rachel said urgently as she took off her sweater, reamaining only in her plain white undershirt. Zack's eyes widened as he saw her rip the thick fabric, grabbing her arm a second too late.

"Oi, what are you doing? We're in the middle of fall, you'll catch a cold without your sweater, dumbass!"

"I'm pretty sure me catching cold is the least of our worries right now, you're stinking up the place with your blood. There could be wolves around," she said matter-of-factly, grabbing a few small branches and putting them on his leg before closing them up with her ripped sweater, covering the whole wound.

A nasty stain of blood slowly formed on the light-coloured fabric.

"This should do for now," she said, proud of how it turned out. "I'm sure it won't leek if you move slowly, but do be careful."

As soon as she was done talking did the cold night breeze brush on her skin, making her shiver and rub her arms in an attempt to warm up. Indeed, having ripped off her sweater was a dumb idea, but the undershirt wouldn't have done anything to properly stop his bleeding, considering how thin it was. It had been a dumb idea, yes, but also the right one.

Zack noticed the state she was in and sighed, annoyed. Quietly, he pulled himself up and moved slightly to lean on a nearby tree. Then, he motionned for ray to come with his hand.

"Get over here," he said, sounding like an order. Rachel raised a questionning eyebrow, but did as she was told and crawled towards him, wondering what it was that he needed.

When she got to arm's length, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her towards him, positioning her so she could sit between his legs; her back pressed on his chest.

She hadn't noticed that his hoodie had been open until he zipped it back up around her, so she could benefit from its warmth as well. The act in itself was very subtle yet rough too, it confused her, but made her feel grateful.

Still, despite having the distracting coppery-smell of blood invade her nostrils; Rachel managed to look up and stare at Zack in a way that even he, of all people; could understand.

He stared back, feeling amused. "I won't sleep for a year, Ray. A small nap and I promise we'll be out of this shitty forest." He explained, still sounding tipsy. "In the meantime, you rest too."

Rachel shook her head, "Zack, I didn't _properly_ treat your wound, all I did was stop the bleeding. If we don't disinfect it, it could get much, much worse." She explained, still worried about his health.

It made him chuckle.

"I'm fine, Ray." He said simply, sounding completely okay. "Now sleep, dumb bitch."

Confused, irritated, but mostly concerned; Ray decided that she should just trust Zack for now. After everything they went through already, it would be wise to simply do just that- trust him, rely on him.

Though as convenient as it may have sounded for the 14 year-old, she still struggled to close her eyes due to many reasons...

 _'But I guess I'll just try, for now...'_ she thought with a sigh as she attempted to sleep, ignoring her close proximity with Zack and the mild stench of blood coming from within the hoodie.

It took her an hour to finally enter a deep slumber.

When morning came, Rachel woke up to the sound of Zack cursing tremendously.

 **To Be Continued...**


	5. Chapter 5

**Curious Thoughts (Part V)**

"aaaaAAAHH HORSE FUCK!"

 ***WHAM!***

Rachel woke up suddenly, feeling completely disoriented and lost. Startled, the young girl looked around for the source of the noise, having trouble finding her bearings.

"God! What's this feeling?! Make it ssstooOOP!" Zack yelled, slamming his head on the wooden wall brutally, making the whole cabin shake in a way that c _ouldn't_ benefit them at all. The serial killer groaned as he kept pulling at his hair, trying to fight the intense dizziness he was experiencing, but in vain.

Rachel looked at her companion with wide, confused eyes. She did not expect to wake to such scene, or to ever witness Zack act so... violent, to himself nonetheless. His unfocused eyes looked around to find something to relieve his pain, anything that could reduce its intensity...

The blonde slowly stood up, looking around to realize that they were truly in a wooden cabin. The sounds of birds chirping outside and rustle of the leaves confirmed her suspicion of them still being somewhere within the woods- far from the city, and perhaps from the police as well.

Her gaze then rested on Zack's slouched form, wondering briefly if he was alright. The pool of blood beneath him had been a clear sign that he had moved around too much and made the wound worse, much to her worry. It was reckless of him, but she wasn't going to dwell on that further than intended.

She highly doubted his severe pain came from a hangover too...

And so with that thought in mind, the petite teen made her way towards the serial killer as gently as possible, trying not to startle him.

"...Zack?" She called, trying to take a glimpse at his face. It was hidden and shadowed by strands of black hair, making it near-impossible to decipher his expression. Though, judging by his groans- it was surely painful.

 _'What on earth happened yesterday?'_ Rachel thought while biting her inner jaw, putting a reassuring hand on Zack's shoulder. As soon as warmth seeped through his hoodie did he violently push the younger girl, making her land loudly on the floor.

She gasped and winced in pain, surprised he had actually pushed her with so much force. If he felt so bad that he couldn't even control his own strength, then it could only mean that something was going terribly wrong-

Rachel pushed herself up and stood, looking at Zack with a worried gaze. She couldn't possibly stand there and do nothing, watching him hurt himself and scream in agony... No, there was something she had to do, something to soothe him...

 _'But what...?'_ Was the question that floated in her mind. _'I can't seem to be able to approach him, plus his wound looks worse. Can't there be something?'_

She thought long and hard, but settled in trying to soothe him again. He probably couldn't see or acknowledge her presence, but it mattered not.

No way was the teen going to let her friend suffer like this.

"Zack." She called, her voice firm and reassuring as she approached him once more. "Zack, it's me...Ray, look at me."

The tall adult flinched as he finally recognized the owner of that voice. As he panted in visible agony, Zack tilted his head to look at Rachel with wide mismatched eyes.

"Ray- Make it stop!" He said, confused at what was happening to him.

It didn't take long for Rachel to kneel next to her friend and hug him tightly, trying desperately to calm him down.

"It's alright, Zack. I'm here, I'm right here with you."

Zack groaned as he wriggled free, "AGH! Dumbass... Uurrk, I ain't a kid for you to- **BLEGH!** "

Rachel turned around and looked away as Zack puked the last remains of yesterday's meals, thankful he had broken the little hug she initiated.

He had continued on for a while before finally stopping. Having puked his guts out, Zack hung his head and began catching his breath; the pain being persistant.

It was in that moment that Rachel saw something bright and shiny on the back of Zack's neck...

 _'Huh? What's that...'_

She crawled towards him and, wordlessly, touched the mysterious object which appeared to have been inserted.

It was round, relatively small- so small she was surprised to have even seen it. It felt like metal, it was surely that... But where did it come from? Zack definitely never had it before, and she was sure of it.

Knowing her companion was more than capable in withstanding pain, Rachel wordlessly dug her fingers around the small object, she felt Zack twitch at the feel of her nails bruising his flesh, but decided to keep on digging deeper.

She felt like she had a good hold of it, eventually; and so she pulled the wretched thing with all her petite might. It was only then that Zack yelled in utter pain, confirming her suspicions towards that piece of metal.

"What the fuck are you doing Ray?!" Zack practically shouted at her, drool coming out of his mouth due to the extreme pain.

"Stop moving! I'm trying to help you!" She spoke, still pulling like her life depended on it. That piece was stubbornly deep, causing hundreds of questions to float within her mind.

"Hold still..." she whispered, biting her lip as she pulled and pulled. Her face growing redder and redder by the second, barely feeling her arms anymore- until finally, she succeeded in ripping it off.

Zack breathed in relief and bliss as his headache slowly nulled into none. Suddenly, it felt like his whole body lost all the weight in the world- making him fall abruptly on Rachel's lap.

 _'Never again.'_ He thought to himself, panting ever so slightly. _'Fucking pain.'_

Rachel brushed his hair with her small fingers, making Zack look up at her. She had quite the odd expression on her face, something mixed with both worry and relief.

"You're okay now?" She asked, somewhat gently. He nodded, not feeling at ease somehow.

"This is what I found in the back of your neck..." Rachel said as she showed the tiny item. Zack's brows furrowed immediately, surprised that such a foreign object managed to bury itself into his flesh.

"What the hell is that?"

"I don't know..." she spoke while examining it further. Two bloody wires were stuck to it, long enough to make Zack uncomfortable. If Rachel hadn't known any better she would've thought Zack volunteeted to become some kind of test subject...

Thankfully that wasn't the case. But still...

"Zack, I need answers." Rachel said very seriously, "tell me what happened yesterday."

Zack stood, leaving the comfort of Rachel's lap. He thought for a moment, a moment that felt a _tad_ longer than it should. If anything, it was a feat in itself- Zack actually _thinking_ _ **properly**_ about something.

What a time to be alive.

"... I have no clue."

Rachel stood up as well, looking at his back with a tilt of the head.

"What?"

"I don't remember, is what I'm trying to say." Zack muttered, rubbing his head with disdain in regards of Rachel's worry towards him.

"You don't remember _anything?_ "

The serial killer straight up snapped at her, "No, you stupid brat! I don't!"

"Not even last night? How we ended up here?" She asked finally, while visibly looking at his leg wound. Zack followed her gaze and was more than a little surprised at the sight.

How could he have missed it? Even the smell of blood in itself was more than just a little noticeable!

"Wh... What the hell? When did this happen?" He asked.

"Last night, when we were running away from the cops... Cops I assume you lured in."

"The cops?!"

"Yes! The cops, Zack! You came back late and drunk, saying and doing all sorts of weird things."

It was then that Zack's expression surprised Rachel beyond words.

"... What kinds of things?" Zack suddenly uttered, eyes wide. Rachel pursed her lips and thought back.

"Nothing of importance, now that I think about it." Came the slow answer. But Zack continued, wanting to confirm something.

"I didn't _hurt_ you, did I?"

"What? No!"

"Alright then..." he sighed, feeling like he lost the weight on his shoulders. That made Rachel morbidly curious, just what was it that made him so worried all of the sudden?

It wasn't important though.

"Think it through..." Rachel said as she started inspecting her pockets for money. "I need you to remember, it's important."

He saw how she pulled out a few dollars from her own wallet and threw her a skeptical look.

"And where are _you_ going?"

"I will go and... see if I can get you something, for that wound, and also food if possible." She replied calmly, counting the several bucks she carried with her. She had always been prepared after starting her new life with Zack, knowing they could run off to a new place at any given time. Carrying her savings turned out to be useful, even if it wasn't much.

It was money she kept for the sake of... well, anything related to her own health and hygiene. Zack wasn't one to care for anything other than snacks, making it a difficult task asking him for anything else. Personal stuff like soap, pads and underwear were things she had to buy on her own... in disguise.

Spending that money on Zack was going to be a necessary sacrifice. She didn't mind anyway.

"I'm off then-"

"No you're not!" Zack stopped her, grabbing her by the arm. "I'm going, you're staying. It's dangerous and we have no idea where we are!"

"Funny thing is that I am one hundred per cent sure that it was you who took us here, since I'm not one to sleep walk... or be somehow able to carry you while sleep walking."

Zack processed that thought...

"I really don't remember anything..." he concluded, disturbed at his lack of memory. "But I still can't let you go out there, espacially when the cops were after us last night!"

"Your wound won't heal itself, Zack. I'll be fine, I know how to defend myself."

He shook his head and looked around for his scythe, cursing slightly when he realized his drunk self didn't bring it with him. He could still deal lots of damage with his fists alone, but his scythe was far more comforting..

"Come on, let me off!" Ray pouted as she grabbed his arm, pushing him away. "I promise I'll be careful."

"Okay fine! But take this first!" Zack groaned in annoyance as he gave her what appeared to be a small pocket knife. Rachel took it wordlessly, feeling a sense of... something familiar deep within her chest. It felt like that one time when...

She shook her head.

"Okay, I will be careful." Rachel said as she walked towards the door, suddenly feeling very cold somehow.

She looked down at herself and remembered how she had ripped her sweater for Zack's sake.

 _'... I guess I'll go out in my undershirt then-'_

Right after that thought though, Zack went and muttered something that sounded suspiciously like an insult, before throwing his hoodie right at her face.

"Wear it."

Rachel lifted it up slightly to peek at his expression.

"Thank you," she said genuinely.

That too, felt somewhat nostalgic now.

 **To be continued...**


	6. Chapter 6

**Curious Thoughts (Part VI)**

Rachel zipped the hoodie up and looked at her surroundings. There was a path that lead towards the east, and another that lead towards the west. She assumed that they came from the later, and so silently decided to continue from there.

Her eyes wandered up at the sky, full of clouds that covered the sun's bright light, announcing the coming of rain.

Peaceful rain. Yet also inconvenient.

Ray pursed her lips as she walked, a thousand of questions twirling within her mind. Everything went by so fast, she had no clue on what to do... or exactly what to think.

All that she was aware of, was that Zack had done something completely out of character, and had dragged her into this hideous mess.

 _'That idiot..'_ she thought to herself, _'what on earth happened while he was outside yesterday? For him to come back drunk, and with the police tailing him nonetheless...'_

She bit her thumb in thought, feeling her brows furrow in concetration and displeasure. What exactly was the problem? How did he get into that situation? She didn't know, but she was definitely going to interogate him once his mind got clearer.

She kept her pace for a good 30 minutes until the sounds of car engines caught her ear. From her position she was quite able to notice a road about 200 yards away.

A road meant she was near to a city of some sort.

Good.

Looking up, the young teen walked along the road while silently hoping that it wouldn't rain so soon, at least not until she goes back to the cabin.

She walked long enough to reach a small gas station and thanked the skies for that. It meant that she didn't have to go so far and reach a city anyway, thus not bringing anymore clues to their location.

Mindful of her face being pretty much everywhere in the news and papers, Rachel tied up her hair and covered it completely with the hoodie, hiding all of her blonde locks securely. But as she was about to go in she suddenly realized of how useless it all was, considering the hoodie in itself would be a dead giveaway-

 _'Great.'_

A bit embarassed at her lack of thought, Rachel settled with taking it off and wearing it back inside out, so the shop clerk wouldn't freak out.

It still smelled pretty badly though.

Whatever.

Rachel stepped foot in the small store within the gas station and gave a quick nod at the clerk who greeted her, letting her eyes scan her entourage for the items she needed. First things first, they were in need of food; so she was going to start with that.

She took a basket and filled it with canned foods that could help them last for a while, as well as water bottles. Taking in pretty much half of an entire isle of canned beans.

It was all there was in that small gas station store when it came to edibles, the rest was all chocolate and sweets, much to her annoyance, but she had no right to be picky.

Then, Ray looked around for painkillers and thankfully found some. She took two then ran towards the clerk, who was surprised at hearing her ask for a first aid kit.

"Why would you need that, little girl?" Was the man's surprised answer, she was definitely a minor.

"...My mom is hurt, she asked me to get one for her. I need it." Rachel lied, figuring he was already being suspicious of her.

"We don't sell first aid kits, little one."

Rachel looked at the very obvious first aid kit on the man's right; set nicely on the counter. He followed her gaze and shook his head sadly, "this one isn't for sale. It's our one and only kit, used for emergencies."

Her eyes furrowed, "this is an emergency. My mom is in pain! And I'm more than willing to pay..." she said, hopeful that he would be gullible enough and believe her.

He sighed as he thought for a moment, Rachel simply pursed her lips and slammed the basket on the counter, making him scan the stuff so she could win some time. He did so.

"... Where is your mother?" The clerk finally asked.

"... Home." Came the reluctant answer. If she had spoken about a car or anything similar, the clerk would probably have volunteered to 'come help' and realize that everything was a ruse.

It still felt awfully suspicious though, "and where do you live? There isn't a single house in miles." He said as he finished scanning. Rachel saw the total price on the computer screen and quietly handed him the money.

"East from here," she said vaguely, "pretty deep in the forest. A quiet house, I had to walk for a long time."

"Why not call for an ambulance?" The clerk spoke slowly as he gave her the change.

"It isn't _that_ bad, but still... I don't want to risk her getting an infection. If you would be so kind to sell me that first aid, we would be eternally grateful."

The clerk thought for a long moment before finally sighing in defeat. He took the first aid kit and gave it to her, shaking his head when she was about to pay.

"No need, just take it, little girl." He spoke softly as he gave her a warm pat on the head. "Take care of your mom, its okay."

Rachel warmly thanked the clerk, despite having stressed her out a little. It was good to meet some decent human beings for once, not that there weren't any, but still; they were a rare kind.

She and Zack were definitely scums, unworthy of any type of kindness due to their sins. However, survival of the fittest it was, witty and clever they must be.

XxX

 _'Fuck fuck fuck fuuuuuck!'_

Zack paced around the cabin while firmly holding his head; trying his mightiest to remember anything from the night before. His memories had been scattered to pieces, leaving only confusing bits to flash every now and then within his mind.

He had no clue at what was going on, how he got that weird, freaky-looking device attached to his neck; and more importantly, how he managed to blow his cover and bring the cops straight towards their hideout.

"Damn it, remember, remember!" He urged himself, knocking on his head to try and... stir something, earn a piece of his scattered memories. He never thought too hard about things, _never!_ But this was different, this was about both his and Rachel's safety...

"Alright, think... thiiiiiink!"

Zack leaned on the wooden wall and began to seriously try to remember. The last memory he had was of him sitting on top of a building... watching the crowds of people to see if a few would wander off in unpopular areas. He recalled that he had been disgusted but also intrigued at a few couple interactions he had witnessed... and he probably had been following a few too.

"A... couple?"

Yes, suddenly it started coming back.

He had been awfully focused on couples that day, for some suspicious and unknown reason. He had looked at them with the eyes of a young curious boy that was just learning something new and fascinating. He remembered that there was this one couple that stood out from the others, because they were louder, less discrete and funny-looking. The woman had been clad in clothes that were so skimpy, that he had practically seen her underwear a handful of times. The guy though, looked like a typical bad guy that would take advantage of girls, but for some reason, he had been staring at that weirdly-clothed girl like she meant the world to him... and it was annoying.

They had wandered off to go towards a dark and empty alleyway. Zack had taken it as an opportunity because double-murders were twice as fun. When he jumped from roof top to roof top, he had finally gotten close enough to see what they were doing ... and he wanted to barf.

Disgusted, Zack had readied his scythe and sliced the couple in half without caring for their reaction, thinking that this time he wouldn't really want to see any emotion from two adults who were humping publicly on an alleyway. Disappointed at the lack of fun, he had been ready to retake his spot on that rooftop to see if he could find better victims...

But a man had approached him, a man that somehow hadn't freaked out when he saw that scene.

And then-

"And... and then?" Zack knocked on his head, "come on... recall, goddammit!"

Everything became a blur again, and Zack cursed even louder than before.

He kicked the cabin violently, making it shake in an alarming way. Just a bit more abuse on his part and it would probably fall down and shatter to pieces... Ray would definitely not want that.

Zack groaned and decided against further exploring his mind for now. Another headache threatened to resurface if he kept going at it, letting him wonder if he should sleep some more before Rachel's return.

He sighed and looked at his wounded leg... then at the stained piece of cloth wrapped around it. It was a ripped sweater, _Rachel's,_ tied neatly in a way that would keep the blood from flowing out too much.

He felt a twinge of guilt for letting the petite girl do such a thing; getting rid of her comfy sweater for his sake. He had always wanted to be her protector, because she idolized him so much... it eventually became more of a duty, however, when they both became 'fugitives'.

Zack didn't know how to cope with their new companionship. He had promised to kill her, and he _would,_ if that annoying voice in his head would ever stop screaming at him to wait, to wait until she becomes seasoned and more mature.

Zack snorted at that thought, _'seasoned, what is she, a fucking salad?'_

His vocabulary had certainly increased since meeting her alright. Not that he would admit it in front of her, openly... or anything... no.

Maybe he should learn how to read.

Or maybe not. He didn't need to, since Ray was around to read and often times, _think_ for him.

But would she be there all the time?

 _"Please kill me."_

"..."

 _"I. Hate. Liars!"_

"...ugh, what did I get myself into?" Zack quietly muttered to himself while running a hand through his hair. Had he been a bit more careful with his ideology and quick, but mindless thinking, then maybe he could have avoided that promise. Sure, he wanted to kill her, the thought was very exciting in itself but... would it be worth it? A quick death, painless, with only a smile for a reward... would it be that great?

Maybe, just maybe, there could be more before the day when he would ultimately end her life?

A sudden memory flashed before him-

 _"Didn't you ever think that there could be more to it?"_

"Wha-!" Zack rubbed his closed eyelids then smacked his head, "what was that-"

 _"You've had curious thoughts concerning this matter before, no? Didn't you want to learn more about it?"_

"Agh! My head!"

 _"Pfeh, no way! I don't need to know more about 'that'!"_

"Make it s-sTOP!"

 _"The..._ **(?)** _And..._ **(?)** _expressions with ..._ **(?)** _It's really beautiful."_

Zack firmly held his head as the headache became more violent, givinf him the odd feeling that his surroundings were blurry and made out of mush. Fragments of his memory were slowly coming back, broken and barley making any sense. He had trouble remembering the face of the man he had been talking to for some reason, and it was frustrating enough for him to pull at his scalp, almost leaving angry red marks on his skin...

He tried yet again to recall, because he knew that it was important..!

 _"I can help you..._ **(?)** _You just have to..._ **(?)** _You agree on this, yes?"_

He then remembered that there were drinks... lots of them, they tasted funny, they weren't like soda. He also remembered that his head started throbbing after a glass or two... then everything went black.

His headache suddenly stopped, leaving him panting and sweating in uneasiness. Those small flashbacks had been mighty helpful and also very worrying... just... just what on _earth?!_

"I need... *pant* to sort this shit out!"

Zack had felt determined to fill in the blanks from his memory, until the alarming sounds of footsteps getting closer caught his attention.

He got close to the window carefully and leaned down, trying to listen more closely... those were definitely not Rachel's footsteps, they were careful... slow... mindful of their surroundings. The person getting closer knew that there was danger nearby, and they intended to be as quiet as possible.

Zack already missed his scythe... but worst case scenario; he had his fists, and they were more than able to break a skull.

When the footsteps halted, he heard a voice:

"This is where we last read the signal; sir." A man spoke, "subject no. 2 shouldn't be too far. We will begin our investigation immediately, please monitor the area."

 _'What the fuck?!'_

 **To Be Continued...**


	7. Chapter 7

**Curious Thoughts (final)**

Zack stood very still, trying not to make any noise. There was a person, a man, a very _mysterious_ guy roaming about, talking about a signal or some shit. He didn't know what the hell he was on about, but he figured that maybe it had something to do with that device Rachel pulled out of him.

 _'No way in hell am I getting caught again...'_ he groaned inwardly, cracking his knuckles to prepare for the worst. Scythe be damned, he was darn well able to protect himself.

The odd man walked around while holding something that looked like a phone, trying to catch another signal. Zack leaned further down to cover himself, slightly worrying about Rachel; if she was already on her way back.

The guy noticed their cabin and decided to enter; not knowing that a serial killer was just inside, waiting for him.

The fact that Zack was an impatient guy didn't help his case either.

As soon as the man entered the cabin did the serial killer throw one, merciless punch at his jaw; making a loud, wet **CRACK!** Echo in the empty room.

The victim yelled and fell on the floor while touching his wounded face, tasting his blood in the process. He spat out a broken tooth that threatened to choke him, both amazed and confused at what just happened. As he tried to stand up, a bloody foot stomped hard on his chest, breaking a few of his ribs.

"Agh!"

"Now what do we have here?" Zack said with a grin, feeling like his sadistic side was slowly coming back. Oh joy, it had been so long since he had killed! "Ya lost, buddy?"

The man opened his mouth to speak, but Zack had been fast enough to stomp him harder, making his victim spit some more blood. The serial killer's strength was more than frightening, it was borderline _insane._ No one this evil should posess this much power, and yet..!

"Y-you... Isaac-"

Zack grabbed him by the collar, "what about me, hm?"

"The... The project, th-they won't let you get away..."

"What the fuck are you on about?!" Zack tsked and started punching him again, left and right. "What is this fucking 'signal' and 'subject no 2' deal huh?!"

"Why the fuck are you following me?!"

"What did you put inside of me!?"

"What. Is. Your. Fucking. DEAL?!"

He continued on, not caring that his fists had gotten dirty with chunks of his flesh and blood. He had a lot of questions, but the man had no time to answer. At some point; Zack felt his victim go limp on the floor, making him halt immediately. Had he killed him? Was his thirst for blood that strong?

Briefly annoyed, Zack muttered a few curses under his breath and lowered down to check his heartbeat. He was alive, but unconscious, good. He could get his answers then.

Had it not been for the mysterious device Rachel had found behind his neck, he would have killed him without a second thought.

"Gotta check if the bastard is armed though." Zack thought as he began inspecting the body. True, he had a few questionnable devices on him, but Zack wasn't exactly sure if they could cause any harm.

He looked through the man's pockets and found a small, circular little item with a red dot in the middle. It was so tiny, he wondered how he even found it. The shape was like a coin's, he figured that whoever made it probably intended to make it seem that way.

Curiously, Zack pressed on the small red dot to see what it does... and right a second after, sharp, pointy wire-looking... _things,_ emerged from the small object, at a speed that had Zack shocked and startled. They could have easily pierced right into someone's body, considering how sharp those 'wires' were.

"Damn..." he looked at it, realizing it was the same object Ray had found. There was no mistaking it.

Zack looked down at his victim; face swollen and completely disfigured. That man was the key to getting his answers, his _memory,_ and more than anything: an explanation.

His train of thoughts were interrupted at the sound of nearby footsteps. He hid himself, alarmed and ready to get the other stranger and hurt him- until he suddenly noticed the very familiar hoodie on that small frame.

"Rachel!" Zack called as he jumped out of the window, startling the petite blonde. "You okay?!"

She blinked numerous times before nodding, "of course I'm okay. Why do you ask?"

"Some asshole tried to catch me!" He said, very seriously.

"I... what?"

He didn't like wasting time talking, so he simply took her by the arm to show her the 'body'. And sure enough, Rachel was both shocked and surprised to find the disfigured man on the cabin floor... but also mindly intrigued by his appearance.

"He also had the same freaky-ass thing that you took outta' me." Zack explained and gave her the item, long and void of any blood like the previous. Momentarily, Ray put her groceries and first aid kit to inspect Zack's brand new discovery.

"I think that this is some kind of tracking device... and something else at the same time." She explained with a whisper.

"No shit." Zack snorted, "it gave me that nightmare of a headache, it must be evil."

"We shouldn't be here for long, I'm sure there are a lot more people looking for you."

"They don't scare me! I can take em' on!" The serial killer stood while ignoring his bleeding leg. Rachel pursed her lips and motionned for him to sit down as she grabbed the fitst aid kit. Zack stared for a moment, then muttered something angry before lowering down and putting his injured leg on her thighs.

She began talking as she carefully started treating his wound, "I know you're strong, I've never doubted you. But with your fists alone, can you take on a group of armed men?"

"I sure as hell can." He said immediately.

"Well I doubt it."

"..."

"I don't like seeing you hurt." She suddenly muttered while concentrating on his wound. The blonde wasn't usually talkative, hearing this much from her was more than a little surprising for Zack.

"This is nothing, don't worry yourself over it."

"We're on the run, of course I'll worry. You're special, you're important to me."

His eyebrows raised at that.

"You're the one that will kill me."

And then his shoulders fell, _'of course, this is what she meant.'_

 _"_ I haven't forgotten the promise." He managed to say, "I did swear it, after all."

"I have no doubts, Zack. I just wish that the day will come sooner."

She quickly finished bandaging him and it was over. Zack looked down at his clean leg and muttered a forced 'thanks'. The day was far from over and they had much to do, but for some reason, the serial killer couldn't shake off the feeling that something wasn't quite right.

Ray opened her bag of groceries and took out some canned meals, "are you hungry?" She asked.

Zack hadn't noticed until she brought it up, but yes, he was _starving._ After puking so much he could only guess that his belly was completely empty.

He scooted closer like a curious puppy to peek at the contents of her bag. "Did you get me some Doctor Potato Crisps?" He asked while looking hopeful.

"No, there weren't any at the store." She lied. He seriously had to lay low on junk food, even if his body was indistructable; one day it will take a negative impact on his health.

Her answer had successfully gotten him even grumpier than before. "Tsk, well did you get anything else?"

"Not chips anyway, I got you some soda, water, canned beef, corn, beans; lots of them, pre-prepared salads, tuna, bread in case you'd rather eat them as a sandwich, and of course..." she pulled out finally a bottle of bright, yellow pills; "vitamin C pills, to stay healthy and awake, for the both of us."

"Holy crap, Ray... where did you get so much money?" Zack thought, a bit amazed that she bought this much stuff. Then again, he wasn't one to buy things so he never knew the exact prices.

She shrugged, "I just saved the money you give me, eventually I managed to get a decent amount. I think... I sort of knew that we would be on the run again."

Zack nodded and their conversation ended just like that. They began eating in comfortable silence, albeit in a hurry in case someone was tailing them. Rachel often turned around to check if the unconscious man... well... stayed unconscious, she did not like the feeling of eating in the presence of a stranger. Zack didn't seem to care though, as he radiated confidence.

Once they were done, Ray packed the rest of the food in her grocery bag and gave Zack painkillers, whom he insisted that he didn't need-

But she won anyway and he swallowed them along with his pride.

The duo turned to finally focus their attention on the man.

"What should we do with him, Zack?" Ray asked curiously. She was a smart girl, but when it came to torture and whatnot; she wasn't exactly sure of what went right or bad.

He shrugged and threw him on his shoulder, "for now we'll take him, when he wakes up, I'll make him speak."

"I'm afraid that you'll really kill him, Zack..."

"Eh, with his face deformed like that there's no way I'll see his expression. I don't think I'd want to kill an ugly shit anyway."

"Okay then, let's go... ah wait!"

Zack halted on his tracks and turned around, "what?"

Rachel unzipped the hoodie, looking sheepish for having forgotten to do so. She had gotten used to the smell, and for some reason, it was very comfortable and soft.

"Your hoodie, thanks for giving it to me." She said as she neatly folded it and handed it over, in a polite gesture.

Zack sighed and looked up, "Damn it Ray, I told you to keep it."

"... I don't think you-"

"Until we get you something warmer, keep wearing it. I'm not sensitive to the cold, in fact, I can't _feel_ cold." He explained and gestured at his body covered with bandages, "got new layers of skin, see? So don't worry."

Ray looked down at her meek undershirt, realizing that he was right "Okay, sorry and thank you."

His lips curved into a half-smile, "good girl, now let's go."

And so they walked ahead, completely unaware of their situation, of their bloody future. Both of them had been curious about the other, more often than they could admit, even to themselves. Their bond, though very unusual, still tied them strongly together, and they both suspected that it could last for a lot longer.

They still were unaware that their caught victim was in fact, fully conscious.

And that his hand was dangerously close to his tracking device.

 **To Be Continued...**


	8. Chapter 8

**Beginnings (Part I)**

The forest hadn't been really deep, but it also hadn't been quite clear either. Zack and Rachel had been walking for over thirty minutes without finding a clear path that led towards their hideout, making it an increasingly difficult and frustrating journey. The serial killer had insisted that he would _not_ go _anywhere_ without his trusted scythe, and therefore; had to go back no matter what.

Ray didn't argue, actually, she rarely ever argued when it came to Zack's stubborn ways, but she didn't mind regardless of the outcome. If anything, her will to die had increased tenfold since the police chased them yesterday, a clear reminder that living in peace was impossible.

But she forced herself to remain patient, for both her and Zack's sake.

It was still difficult though.

"He's been unconscious for a long time." The petite blonde suddenly said, growing wary at the limp man dangling on Zack's shoulder.

The serial killer just peeked at him while walking casually, "Guess I knocked him hard, huh. I don't blame him for sleeping this long."

Rachel furrowed her brows, "his arms are awfully stiff for an unconscious man, I think he's pretending to remain unconscious."

"You think so?" Zack said as he suddenly threw the guy on the ground, making him yelp in surprise. The serial killer's eyes widened, "son of a bitch!"

"Wait!" The man cried out, "please let me explain myself!"

"Yeah you better explain yourself before I squish that tiny head of yours to pieces!"

"No Zack, stop." Ray said while grabbing hold of his arm. The man, for a moment, thought he had been saved by the petite girl's compassion as his shoulders slumped. "Torturing him here is too dangerous, people might find us ... we best be on our way and continue somewhere more private."

The coldness of her tone and her blank, emotionless eyes had been more than enough to prove the stranger wrong. She was just as bad.

Zack glared at the man while considering Rachel's proposal. She noticed the hesitation in his stance, and so she offered with a shrug; "you can _drag_ him if you want to."

Zack smiled roguishly, "will do."

The moments that followed were both confusing and blurry for their captive. First, he noticed Zack pull on the knot that held his bandages tight. Then, said bandages were wrapped around his neck and tightened to a level where it could easily choke him. Right after, he noticed that it served as a leash to quite literally, _drag him._

And yes, Zack was pulling at the surprisingly sturdy bandage as if he were taming a wild animal. Brutal and uncaring of the damage it would cause.

"Hold on!" He cried out, feeling the ground bruise his skin, "I can walk!"

"I dunno', I like it better when you're in pain." Zack laughed pleasantly.

"On second thought... Might as well let him walk, he'll leave a nasty trail like this." Rachel reconsidered, purely for their safety and not for the man's comfort.

"Don't be such a killjoy, look at him! He's having the time of his life!"

Rachel just stared at the man who was agonizing on the floor, tears spilling from his severely injured face. She ought to admit, she pitied him a little ... just a little though. Not that she would admit it to Zack.

She figured there was nothing else to say and continued following them silently. But something was off... the man, despite being mistreated and cruelly bullied, didn't beg for his life. Actually, she swore she saw him look around for someone, as if half-expecting to be rescued at any moment-

 _'Hold on...'_

The blonde jogged at the man's side and forcefully pried his hand open, ignoring his protests. When she saw the small object on his palm, her eyes widened.

"You didn't just-"

Their hostage took this moment of sheer shock and confusion to dash away. Zack growled and pulled at his custom-made leash, making their prisoner gasp and halt momentarily. Not taking anymore chances, the man pulled out of his pants a small butterfly knife and cut the bandages open, finally free.

He ran fast enough to disappear behind the bushes. Zack made a move to follow him, but Ray firmly grabbed his arm while shaking her head.

"Let go, Ray! We gotta' get him!"

"No, Zack, _we_ have to flee! If we don't-"

She caught a glimpse at something bright behind a tree and immediately pushed Zack down, much to his surprise. A loud **BANG** echoed in the forest, scaring the birds away from their nests. Zack's mismatched eyes widened at the sight of crows flying around, ruining the clear blue sky's view.

Ignoring her body on top of his, Zack glanced at his left to look at the large hole on a tree, finally understanding what happened a mere second ago.

They had dodged a bullet. Literally.

Something clicked then, something primal and completely spontaneous...

Isaac Foster's survival instincts.

There was no time to think, or consider the possibility that they were heavily outnumbered. No, he had to _act,_ and quickly, for Rachel. The world became blank, there was no other option but to _fight._

He took hold of the teen's waist and held her close while trying to figure out how many of them there were. It took but a second for five well-armed men in combat suits to emerge, straight out of the bushes, with guns and ready. Zack cursed and jumped up to reach a tree branch, barely avoiding the series of bullets that were aimed his way.

"What are you doing? Don't kill him!" One man shouted with a raised hand, "our job is to catch him, unharmed!"

The rest of them tsked as they saw his retreating form, jumping from a tree to another like a wild animal. "How the heck are we supposed to do that?"

"I think I know... let's not lose sight of him!" The same man commanded, running at full speed towards his prey. The rest of the bunch followed just as quickly.

XxX

"Fuck this bullshit!" Zack cursed as he looked behind, "I'm supposed to do the chasing, not the other way around!" He groaned, forgetting that his wound had re-opened, staining his fresh bandages. Blood oozed out very soon and Rachel noticed it.

The blonde analyzed the situation very carefully all the while looking at her partner's face. So far, it had felt like the whole world was chasing after Isaac Foster, her angel of death, and she was powerless to stop it. The annoying feeling of being a bother, useless, was starting to sink in, and she wanted nothing more but to help her companion.

So she put a gentle hand on his cheek.

"Zack, put me down." She ordered softly, trying to make something out of this dilemma. Zack looked at her incredulously, wondering what the hell was going on in that brain of hers.

"Are you out of your mind? No." Was the serial killer's final answer. There was no way he'll give up on his... his companion. Yes, companion.

"They seem to be after you only, I'm baggage. Let me hide and I wont hinder." Rachel tried to reason with him, a futile attempt, really... But there was no other choice. They were over a dozen and well-armed. No matter how strong Zack was, the idea that he could _somehow_ survive would be nothing more than a fantasy.

He was human, in a sense... well, in a way.

He could die too.

But Zack wasn't having it. Actually, he settled with ignoring her, thinking that her idea was total rubbish.

 _'Yeah right. Because leaving you won't be dangerous. Fucking smart.'_

Zack realized he wasn't actually speaking those words directly towards Rachel, but he felt as though she understood him regardless. Her furrowed brows and pouty mouth confirmed it. Heck, it was the first time that the serial killer saw such an expression on her face. Now that made him almost run head-first into a tree.

"We'll get caught like this." She spoke, worried.

"We won't, I got you." Zack reassured her and looked back, grimacing at the men that were already so close. The serial killer was very fast, it was surprising to see them run just as quickly.

 _'They must be trained or something.'_  
He thought in annoyance, _'no way am I getting caught.'_

He quickened his pace and barely dodged another bullet aimed at his back. He tsked and jumped back on the solid ground seeing that his jumping from tree-to-tree didn't help. With a little more effort, he could run twice as fast and perhaps escape their line of sight.

A few bullets grazed him but that was just about it. Rachel was thankfully far smaller than him, so shielding her was an easy task- however...

Something was off.

It felt like they weren't exactly trying to hit him. No, actually, it felt more like they wanted to purposefully bruise him at certain spots... Almost like their whole purpose wasn't to kill him. This puzzled Zack greatly.

Then the dizziness started.

"Oh fuck, Rachel I don't think those are normal bullets." Zack panted as he felt his body grow suddenly ten times heavier. The blonde's eyes widened as she looked up at him.

"What do you mean?!"

"My stamina is running low for no god damn reason, and I can't focus."

She stared at his face and noticed the fatigue in his mismatched eyes. She had known Zack to have limitless energy, and so far, their run had started a mere five minutes ago... No way would he suddenly grow this tired in normal circumstances.

So Rachel, still being held tightly by the serial killer; leaned just a bit to peek at his upper-arm, where the last bullet had scratched him. There was a bit of blood on the pure white bandages that covered his skin- but what stood out the most was the foreign purple-ish stain along with said blood.

They had coated their bullets with some kind of liquid.

 _'Oh no, please don't let it be poison!'_ She thought worriedly. This was the last thing they needed, why did their day have to start off so badly?!

"How are you feeling right now?" She asked her companion.

"Like shit."

"Okay... Hear me out, the bullets were coated with something-"

"Oh fuck me-"

"But there's no guarantee that its poison. Could be some kind of drug..."

"Yeah it _definitely_ doesn't feel like poison, definitely."

 _Sarcasm._ Sarcasm on Zack's part was never good.

"Listen, you have to let me go." Rachel tried to reason with him, "I'm slowing you down, I'm _tiring_ you. Carrying extra weight will do you harm, that's why you should just let me run and hide by myself."

Zack did not answer. Instead, he settled with taking a brisk turn to outrun the mysterious men, completely ignoring Rachel's plea. So far if they continued on that path, then surely, they would end up reaching the city..

And perhaps find their old and abandonned apartment complex.

 _'My scythe, I need my scythe!'_  
Zack thought as he tried to fight the dizziness away. He had more chances of slaughtering those motherfuckers with his trusted weapon than jumping right into a one-sided fist fight. He was stupid, but not THAT stupid. The consequences this time around were more than just some wounds on his already, wounded up body...

He had to take Rachel to safety, she wasn't going to keep that 'let me off' bullshit any longer, not on his watch. Their oath was deep, but not in the sense where he would let anyone aside from him finish her. Zack was selfish too, and he wanted to send the girl to the afterlife as beautifully as possible.

So when he ran faster to surprise the small army of men behind them; he spoke for Rachel's ears only.

"If I fall down or whatever, you run and make sure to never look back."

Her look of astonishment was one to remember.

"You're going to pass out-"

"Yeah maybe, probably, not important." He panted harshly, unable to withstand whatever had been indirectly injected into him. "Just do what you can not to get caught, if I, ugh, y'know."

He meant it, he wanted her to flee. But Rachel didn't want that, their oath alone was a good reason to never give up on her Angel of Death. She was smart, she knew that the unexpected was bound to happen soon enough- so she had a plan.

It wasn't the smartest of plans, but it could work.

The petite teen felt the serial killer slow down as the 'poison/drug' started to take effect. It wouldn't be long until their pursuers would finally catch up to them and do whatever with Zack... and possibly her as well. She figured they had nothing to do with the police, and briefly wondered if they were related to the serial killer's blank memories of that night.

Suddenly, Zack grunted and collapsed on the ground with Rachel still in his arms, unintentionally crushing her. She gasped and rolled him over so he could rest on his back, worry written in her young features.

"Z-zack?!" She called and tapped him lightly on his cheek, wanting a reaction. "Are you okay? Zack!"

She got no response.

Rachel put a tiny hand underneath some loose bandage to feel his body heat, and gasped at how hot he was. Sweat formed on some parts of his body, drenching half of his face and chest. He was breathing rapidly, in desperate need of oxygen, and she knew then that he was starting to lose consciousness.

The men caught up and pointed their guns at the duo, ready to shoot at any given moment. When they found the serial killer on the ground with his companion trying her hardest to wake him up- they knew that the chase was over. They had won.

"Alright little girl," the same man that had commanded the rest approached her, gun still aimed at their direction. "Step aside from Foster, slowly."

Rachel remained there, unmoving, next to the heavily breathing serial killer.

The man reloaded his pistol while approaching her, "I won't repeat myself, step aside."

She didn't move.

With a sigh, he got close to Rachel and grabbed her by the upper arm, intending to drag the teen out of their way. She twitched at the contact momentarily, and the man noticed.

But he noticed too late.

In a flash of light, Rachel shoved her hand inside of her (zack's) hoodie-

Grabbed her own pistol-

And shot the man right in the face, making a loud, gruesome and wet BANG echo in the vast forest. Blood splattered all over her, warm and cold at the same time, she saw red.

What followed went by like a blur for the stunned men. In a moment; they watched their leader attempt to drag the girl out of their way... In the next, they witnessrd their leader's head explode into bloody pieces... and after that, they saw a flash of yellow.

And they started to shoot.

Rachel moved like water; fluid and precise. She took hold of their leader's lifeless body to shield herself from the bullets and immediately climbed up a tree to escape their view. The rest of the bunch fired randomly at the trees in an attempt to get her, but stopped when minutes went by and she was nowhere to be seen.

They wondered if she was either gone or hurt- until suddenly, one of their men collapsed on the floor, motionless, with a huge hole on his chest.

Standing behind was Rachel with a bloody knife.

"Sh-shoot her!"

The teen had been far quicker than they thought. In a flash she would jump from a place to another, disappearing from their sight then reappearing to inflict damage in the swiftest ways. Their past captive had no idea how his men started to lose life, one by one; either shot or stabbed.

He cowered on his spot, backing away slowly as he stared widely at his last remaining comrade. They exchanged looks and tried their hardest to locate Rachel, who had disappeared yet again amongst the trees. They didn't have the right to make mistakes anymore... Their mission was clear as day; bring back Isaac Foster alive. That's all there was, nothing too hard, nothing too complicated.

But they did not mention the blonde in his files.

They had no idea who they were up against. And it was beyond frightening to believe that, indeed, they were getting their ass kicked by a 14 year old girl. Had they known this cute child would be a threat, they would've been more prepared.

But it wasn't the case.

"Where the hell is she?!" One of them asked as he looked around for any sign of her. The wounded man on his left looked as well, but found absolutely nothing.

"Stay on your gua-"

The man couldn't finish his sentence as he felt something sharp slice open his throat; rendering him mute and unresponsive. He felt no pain, just cold, extremely cold; save for the warm blood that poured all over his body.

His eyes saw black, and the only thing he could think about before dying; was how small the hand on his shoulder was. _The hand of a child._

His comrade saw it all, mouth agape, completely paralyzed at the sight. He stepped back and tripped, emptying his bowels in fear of the small teen covered in blood.

He couldn't stop staring at her dark blue eyes, void of fear; fear of death.

He didn't even realize that she had pointed her gun at him.

"You've got some explaining to do."

 **To be continued...**


	9. Chapter 9

**Beginnings (Part II)**

It was already very early in the morning, meaning Officer Biggs had to wake up earlier than usual simply to carry on with the 'investigation'. Their absurd chase yesterday had been enough to tire him completely, and now there he was, patroling the area this early and on a weekend.

For a man this young, one would have thought that the higher-ups could take the job at his stead. Only recently did his wife give birth to his baby daughter, a sweet little thing that he quickly wanted to bond with- in her early days. Alas, however, he had no such luck, or time, to even step foot inside of his home.

 _'Justice cannot rest,'_ he sighed to himself and decided to start with a town nearby. The smartest thing to do was to check the surrounding areas near the forest, see if Isaac Foster escaped there, and if not; well then... perhaps he would call for reinforcements and check the woods.

Biggs ran a hand through his curly brown hair and checked the map. If they had crossed the forest to reach the main road; then finding them wouldn't be so easy. Even if Isaac stood out the most out of the duo, the country was vast and some parts were more than a little empty...

"I sure hope the wolves ate him." He muttered and pulled over next to a gas station. "He would probably be chewy, with him being an over-cooked psychopath."

His last comment was quite harsh and mean spirited, but he believed that there was no room for respect when it came to killers. Isaac Foster was no exception.

Not wanting to waste any more time; Biggs entered the convenience store near the gas station. If he wanted a lead, then he needed to ask questions.

He was greated by a clerk, who nodded with a smile.

"Good day, officer."

"Ah, good day." Biggs grinned, "can I have some of your time? We're undergoing an investigation and, you see, there's been a kidnapping..."

The clerk scratched his head, "a kidnapping you say?"

"Yes, a little girl was taken."

His eyes widened, and Biggs gave him two pictures. One of a young, blue-eyed blonde aged 14, and the other of an odd-looking, bandaged man in his twenties.

The clerk shook his head immediately, "I'm fairly certain that I haven't seen those two, if I had then I would've surely remembered." He said, but then an image popped in his head. "Though there _was_ an odd little girl who came by an hour ago."

This caught the officer's interest, "can you describe her for me?"

"I'll try... but really it was hard to even have a glimpse of her face. She wore this over-grown hoodie and appeared to be this tall-"

Biggs started taking notes...

"And judging by the tone of her voice, she sounded like a young teen, maybe twelve... thirteen, or fourteen even."

"Young... twelve to fourteen years old... Okay, and?"

"She bought a lot of canned foods, some painkillers, and even wanted a first aid kit."

"First aid?" Biggs sounded curious, "why?"

"She said she needed it to treat her injured mother."

He raised an eyebrow, "why didn't she just call an ambulance then?"

"My thoughts exactly. I suggested that, but she insisted that it wasn't serious. I thought I'd volunteer to check up on her mother but their house is in the woods."

"And that's all?"

"Yes, I just gave her the first aid and wished her goodluck. She left immediately."

Biggs just wrote everything in his notebook with speed that would've impressed the most diligent of students.

When he was done, he walked up to the clerk and gave him a warm pat.

"You sir, have been very helpful. Bless you."

The clerk smiled, "not at all, I hope you find her, whoever she is... and that you catch that wretched kidnapper."

"Trust me, in this world; justice will _always_ prevail."

He bid the clerk farewell and exited the small store with a forced smile. He had more than a few clues to lead them somewhere, but the possibility that the odd child whom the clerk had mentionned was in fact, Rachel Gardner, felt surreal. For one, why would a victim of abudction suddenly walk around, buy random food and painkillers instead of heading straight for the police station? Hell, she could have asked the clerk himself for help!

"Stockholm syndrome?" Biggs thought, "is that even possible for a girl that young? Hmm..."

He continued to think things through for a while before finally deciding to grab his walkie talkie..

"This is Biggs, I think I have a lead..."

XxX

Zack felt like shit.

He had felt like shit a lot recently, but this time it took the cake.

His whole body felt hot, heavy, and in pain, like someone had thrown him in a busy road and let all the cars run him over for a good hour. There was no way he could move in his state- not even lift a pinky. It was so pathetic that he gritted his teeth in frustration. Most of his victims knew- _had known_ him to be a monster and even denied his humanity. He couldn't stand to be pathetic, and yet there he was; looking more human than ever.

"Fuck fuck fuck fuck-" he repeated endlessly, wanting very much to stand up and... and do something, anything but laying there... motionless.

Standing still was not his forte, and why the hell was it so dark anyway? Did he open his eyelids at least? Probably not. Hell, was he _that_ weak?

Zack groaned and tried again to wake up, maybe move around a little bit. The world around him was so dark... It felt extremely uncomfortable to remain still in a shadowed area. Usually, he didn't mind the darkness all that much, because it helped him get rid of his victims easily. However, in this state? It became completely different.

The serial killer felt like his body wouldn't budge anytime soon, so he settled with giving up momentarily... maybe rest for a while to see if his strength would return. Zack wasn't known to fear anything, usually, he was a person to fear, and not the other way around.

So when some small bits of memory started coming back, along with muffled voices... he began to panic slightly.

He did not want to start dreaming yet.

He did not want to witness his past again, in those god awful nightmares.

But instead of reliving a traumatic experience and finding himself in that locked room like usual..

Zack witnessed an unusual scenario, starring himself and a stranger.

 _ **(First Memory)**_

"Ugh, disgusting." Zack muttered as he swiftly pulled the scythe out of the couple's entangled body. "Get a room, for fuck's sake. I did _not_ need to see that!"

He spat on the guy's head and kicked some dirt on the girl's bloodied body, completely exposed in the most indecent places, making the serial killer gag. He wasn't one to apreciate nudity like your normal folk, espacially the 'slutty' ones. He had been confident that sex wouldn't satisfy him as much as murder and that his bloodlust would overcome anything else by itself. There was no need to apreciate women in such a way, even if he found their frightened expressions to be the most satisfying.

With a sigh and an angry curse, Zack flicked his scythe to clean some blood off, unhappy with his double kill. Maybe he should just go home... There was nothing thrilling in this city, and people were just gross and weird. Rachel was surely waiting for his return, he kinda' missed her.

He turned around to head home, until a silhouette caught his eye.

Zack squinted at the shadowy figure and held tightly into his scythe, already feeling suspicious of the person. They had most definitely witnessed his slaughter-session, however brief, and it might be a problem...

 _'This means more action though...'_ the serial killer thought with a grin and licked his lips. _'Maybe I'm not so unlucky after all.'_

He readied himself and took his usual stance, feeling his bloodlust emerge again. The three second game wouldn't quite work in such a place; since there were so many people around, on the other side of the alley. But still, it was possible to have some fun out of this.

"So what? Don't you think its about time you start runnin'?" Zack said hopefully, wanting to gain a reaction from the person. So far, nothing.

Zack approached him(... or her, most likely a him though) slowly, as if to savour the moment a bit longer. The person remained still on his spot and appeared rather at ease, much to the serial killer's annoyance. He was starting to get flashbacks of Rachel, a mere year and a half ago...

"Aren't you scared for your life?" Zack finally asked, feeling desperate at this point for a nice, long and delicious chase. The man chuckled.

"Of you? Nope." He admitted, and Zack noted that his voice was deep, very deep. He was definitely a man.

Zack wasn't a fan of his bravado, it was damn irritating.

He decided against savouring the kill this time too, and opted to murder him simply because he was pissing him off.

"Actin' tough, huh. Well, not for long, sucker!"

For a second there, Zack thought he saw the man smile mockingly at him, completely at ease and void of fear as the serial killer charged with his scythe raised high.

He jumped and attempted to strike him, but the man side-stepped his attack easily. Furious and frustrated; Zack turned to immediately strike again, but was more than surprised when the stranger dodged his every hit just as swiftly.

"Ugh! Won't you die already?!" He yelled and continued swinging his weapon around in a desperate way to get him. No matter how much he tried; he couldn't even reach a strand of the man's hair.

This little one-sided fight ended when the man suddenly blocked Zack's scythe with both of his hands; grabbing into the edge easily with a _smack!_

"Uh!"

"I think that's enough for now," the stranger spoke; now completely visible under the moonlight. Zack couldn't believe his eyes- he had been beaten by a middle-aged man in his early 50's.

"You're not the boss of me!" The serial killer growled like a mad dog and tried to put more pressure into his next strike to cut the stranger in two. However, he blocked the hit yet again, proving his strength to greatly surpass Zack's.

"Now now, that's enough Isaac. I'm not an enemy." The man spoke gently as he pushed the scythe away, "I'm here to help you."

Zack pulled his scythe back towards him and looked at his new most-hated-person with wide eyes, "help me? What the hell, why would I need your help?!"

The stranger smiled, "oh trust me, you'll need it. For one, I think it's best for us to go somewhere else and chat... Being found out wouldn't be smart." He said and looked pointedly at the dead couple, still joined intimately and covered in blood.

Zack grimaced at the sight.

"I'm not an idiot, I won't follow you." He said stubbornly, "what if its a set up? You could be a cop for all I know."

"Hmm... that _is_ true. Being wary is a good thing, but this time; I can guarantee that I am not an officer." The man opened his arms wide, "I have no weapon on me, or phone, or any other means of communication. You can check if you wish to."

The serial killer furrowed his brows, "No thanks. I don't feel like touching a disgusting old man."

"Suit yourself," the stranger sighed and began walking further into the alleyway, stopping just to look at Zack curiously. "Well? Won't you follow me?"

"As if I'll follow your untrustworthy ass!" He snorted and turned to walk on the opposite direction. He didn't have the time and patience to deal with a random old man that possibly had a kink for murder. Nowadays, people like that were common and it disgusted him, badly.

The stranger sighed and ran a hand through his now graying black hair, "You really are a stubborn man. To think I could've made your life easier..."

Zack ignored him completely and was about to climb back up to the roof-

"You should put Rachel's feelings in consideration."

And then he stopped...

 _'What..?!'_

Caught off-guard by the mention of Rachel's name, Isaac had been _so_ close to jump back down, choke him half to death then interrogate him about his knowledge concerning the blonde...

But then he remembered that her name was everywhere on the news alongside his...

 _'Shit he almost had me...'_

"What about Rachel?" Zack started.

"Isn't she miserable?" The man spoke knowingly, "the poor child... Being kept alive against her will, don't you think that's sad?"

It took a minute for Zack to process what the man had said.

"Wait.. hold on-"

"That sweet young girl only asked for one, small, and simple favor..." The stranger continued while walking in circles, as if deep in thought. Zack stood there, mouth wide open in shock as he struggled to find the right words.

"Now wait just a second-"

"Why don't you kill her, Isaac? What's stopping you?" He asked innocently.

"I-"

The stranger approached him, looking up with a small grin, "are you actually fond of her?"

"Huh? No!"

"Interesting... so your own selfishness is what's stopping you from taking her life... well, that's a first."

Zack jumped back down and glared at the stranger, "get off my butt, old man! Why do you have to bring Ray into this?" He shouted, not liking his assumptions. The stranger grinned and tilted his head, almost as if he was enjoying himself.

"Why not? Her name is always alongside yours in the news, she's practically the reason why you're so famous lately." He spoke innocently, making Zack clench his fists in anger.

What bothered the young serial killer the most... was the man's obvious knowledge of their oath.

There was no way that anyone (aside from him)would know of Rachel's desire for death and eternal peace. Those who had _known_ about it were long gone already. If anything, following the events of last year; their promise had become something personal, intimate, and an important rope that tied them together at all times.

How this random 50 year old guy knew was beyond Zack.

"How the hell did you learn about our promise anyway?" Zack asked while folding his arms, clearly irritated by the whole situation.

The stranger shrugged, "I have my sources, anyone with money can afford information." He revealed while rubbing his thumb, index and middle finger together to motion 'cash'.

Ok, so he was rich? No need to make that obvious, Zack wasn't interested in money. If he wanted something, he would just take it. Only recently with Rachel did he make the 'exception' of taking his victims' wallets for her well-being and comfort.

... Well-being and comfort, he was a walking contradiction.

The stranger soon realized that Zack wouldn't be easy to persuade if he kept going at it that way.

So he opted for another strategy.

It seemed as though the mention of Rachel Gardner was what caught the killer's attention. He could easily guess that she meant a lot to him... no matter how much he denies it. Perhaps a little push would do the trick.

"I wonder why she hasn't commited suicide yet..." the stranger started thoughtfully, making sure to keep an eye on Zack's reaction. "It is, after all, the fastest way to leave this world."

"You wouldn't understand, don't bother trying." The killer answered impatiently, "This only concerns me and Ray, so kindly fuck off."

"Aah, aren't we being evasive. Hm, if this is the kind of game you wish to play, then I may suggest something that could benefit us both-"

The man rubbed his hands together and gave Zack a pleasant smile.

"How about I grant her wish and kill her instead?"

 _'WHAT THE FUCK?!'_

Many people had experienced anger, but seldom had known or seen true fury.

The world turned into black and nothing mattered anymore. His surroundings, the curious passer-by's who had suddenly noticed the dead bodies, the now clouded dark sky and the coming of rain... it didn't matter, nothing mattered.

He couldn't see anything else but rage and the man who was in front of him.

This was the last straw... the last. Goddamn. Straw.

The stranger had strongly believed himself to surpass the killer's abilities. So when he noticed the dark expression on Zack's face; he readied himself to dodge and block whatever attack was going to be directed towards him.

However, things took a rather different turn.

It only took a second for the man to find himself pinned to the wall, his feet hovering above the dirty ground, and his neck nearly broken in two by the killer's powerful grip.

He tried to pry Zack's hand open desperately; completely unable to utter a word of help or anything of the sort. Saliva oozed out of his mouth while his eyes barely focused on the serial killer's heterochromia.

"Listen here, and listen _well..._ " Zack hissed as he leaned closer to the man, "No one, in this entire, _fucking_ mess of a world can kill her but ME!" He pulled the man closer and slammed his head repeatedly on the wall with every word; "ME ME ME ME ME ME ME **ME!"**

The sounds that emitted from their alleyway were more than enough to attract attention from the main road. Eventually, curious people peeked to see exactly what was going on...

Zack barely acknowledged the woman's scream on his left; not caring if he got caught or whatever. He vaguely remembered a man saying he'll call the police, and another crowd shout 'this is him! This is Isaac Foster!'

He would run, he would definitely run, but only after making the stranger suffer.

The killer's eyes, fixated on him; tried to find a reason behind his cheeky smile.

"A-amazing..." the man barely spoke, suffocating; "to... think... she can... bring such an e-expression out.. of you."

Zack snarled and added pressure to his grip, fully intending to hear that long-awaited snap.

But before he could do anything else, a shadow appeared from right behind him, and a large hand caught his arm to pull him away from the stranger.

He turned around, eyes blazing in fury-

 _ **(First Memory - End)**_

XxX

Zack jolted awake at the feel of something warm and soft on his right arm. He looked around to survey his surroundings and concluded that he was no longer in that back alley. The first thought that came to his mind was to remove whoever or whatever held him.

So he turned to look at his right-

And found Rachel kissing his arm.

"Wh... wh..."

 _'What the hell is she doing?!'_

Unable to comprehend or control such a confusing situation; Zack pulled his hand away from the blonde's lips, making a small 'pop!' Sound. She blinked and looked up at him, her cheeks slightly puffy; and spat some blood from her mouth.

"You're awake." She said, bluntly, and wiped the corner of her lips. Zack kept his shocked expression for a good fifteen seconds before uttering.

"What the hell were you doing?!" Had it not been for the bandages and his burnt skin, he probably would've blushed like crazy... maybe.

Rachel gave him a look that made him feel ten times more stupid. "I was trying to remove the poison by sucking on your wounds, I figured that would be better than... wait and see how you'd turn out."

Zack tried to clear his already _very_ confused mind to understand and process that...

Rachel hadn't kissed his arm.

 _Thank heavens._

Embarassed and slightly irritated, Zack sighed loudly and ran a hand through his hair. "Haa, right... I guess."

Rachel nodded and took a wet towel from a bucket nearby, wiping some of the blood off of Zack. He looked at his body and briefly noticed that his wounded parts were void of any bandages... meaning she had taken the liberty to undress him of his second skin.

He was supposed to be annoyed and angry, but he felt surprisingly calm. Perhaps it was due to Rachel's own serenity.

Either way, he knew she had done it to clean his wounds.

"Hey," Zack called. Rachel continued cleaning his wounds without looking up.

"Mm?"

"Thanks, Ray." He said softly.

"You're welcome, Zack." She answered, just as amicably.

But then the serial killer took better notice of his surroundings and his brows furrowed.

"Where are we?" He asked and wondered why this living room looked so familiar.

"Home."

"HUH?"

Rachel finally looked at him straight in the eyes, "we're home, Zack."

"But... But we were in a forest and there were these assholes that chased us-"

"Yeah, but we got away."

And to prove her point, she motioned at the cowering figure in the corner; which Zack identified as the guy he had beaten up a few hours ago.

"What the fuck is he doing here?!" He exclaimed loudly.

"He brought us back."

"How?"

"I made him."

Why is it that everytime he wakes up, life becomes more confusing?

 **To be continued...**


	10. Chapter 10

**Beginnings (Part III)**

Zack blinked once, twice, before letting out a frustrated sigh.

"Ray, what's going on?"

Rachel stood up to refill the bucket with clean water, "We're on the run, that's what's going on."

The killer glared pointedly at the beaten up guy sitting on a corner, "I get that, but why rely on him?"

"I needed someone to carry you, and to drive us back home. He was the only one I could use."

"Yeah but how did you do it?"

"I threatened him, pretty much."

"With what?"

"My gun."

"You have a gun?!"

"Of course, Zack."

"Since when?"

"I don't remember."

"Damn it, Ray! What are you so mad about?!" The killer finally snapped. After spending so much time together, he could tell when Rachel got mad about something. One time, (he remembered clearly- and he swore to never make the same mistake again) it was a stormy night and Zack had been too bored, too tired to actually do anything but sleep around. Stressed out and completely pissed off (most likely due to his lack of murder) he decided to get rid of his frustration by breaking things... of course, things that weren't of value to Rachel.

He learned to respect her, at some point. Anyway, she had been reading a book and the serial killer took the liberty to grab a random piece of dusty furniture. Obviously, what followed later was hysterical laughter and noisy ruckus.

The blonde hadn't been happy, in fact, she had been (deep down, of course) _furious,_ despite her usual poker face.

Zack had suffered through two weeks of one-sided responses, moodiness, complete sarcasm and disgusting, vegetable-only meals. Not to mention, lack of his precious _doctor potato chips_ in the cupboard.

 _"Please avoid destroying our house from now on."_ She had said, clearly, so he could understand.

He knew better than to anger her, he would miss her smiles.

So he had to know what got her pissed this time around, no matter what.

"Answer me, Ray." He insisted, impatiently.

The blonde finished filling the bucket and sat next to Zack; her gaze focused elsewhere. For some reason their plain, stained wall seemed a thousand times more interesting than a deadly serial killer covered in bandages.

"Did you regain your memories, Zack?" She asked, softly.

Now this caught him slightly off-guard, but he wouldn't lie, he had no reason to.

"Not all of them but... I remember parts."

She nodded absent-mindedly, trying to form the right words without sounding too direct.

"Okay, can you tell me what you remember?"

Thinking about it; all Zack really remembered was witnessing a drunk couple fuck in a back alley and some random middle-aged guy who knew kung-fu.

Still, he decided to tell her about his dream anyway, save for a few parts like... let's say... his rather embarassing confession regarding her future death.

He would definitely keep that bit to himself.

It took no time at all for Zack to finish on with his memory, and Rachel listened to all of it. She nodded in understanding, but kept her expressionless mask through everything. The serial killer could tell that she was still angry, and he was itching to know why... so he could finally make it up to her, apologize, or do whatever. But then again, patience is a virtue; and he was everything but virtuous.

After an agonizing minute of silence; Rachel finally spoke; "I see... So I assume that this isn't the complete scenario, yes?"

Zack looked up with a groan and a sigh; "God, I don't know, okay? It was all just a dream anyhows, it couldn't be accurate."

"I don't think so, I think that the first half of your dream is 100% accurate."

"... and what makes you say that?" He asked, looking twice as tired.

Rachel marely stared at their captive, and Zack understood.

"He pretty much confirmed your story... and more." The blonde muttered. "He is connected to the man from your dream, I believe they're both part of an organization."

Zack scratched his head and wondered how everything turned out this way. He couldn't remember what happened after that memory, no matter how much he tried. His head already started throbbing again, and he didn't want to resurect that god-forsaken headache. So far, the only thing he could hope to get is a brief summary of that damned night.

"Did he tell you anything else?" The killer questionned.

"Just that they were ordered to bring you back alive, somehow." Rachel answered, a frown apparent in her features; "though I ought to admit... I'm rather disappointed on your behalf."

 _'There it is...'_ zack thought, _'The thing that pissed her off.'_

"Apparently, Zack, you had followed him."

Completely taken off-guard by that, Zack leaned in while furrowing his brows.

"Sorry but... _what?_ "

Rachel leaned closer to face him as she whispered, "You followed the man, Zack, and you agreed to join his organization. That chip we found inside of you? It had been _willingly_ inserted into your body. There never was a struggle; this whole mess is the result of your drunken self and his idiotic mistakes."

The serial killer shook his head abruptly, "no fucking way! I fought the guy, I had him pinned to the wall, he was cornered and-"

"And what? You don't remember the rest, so why do you keep insisting on something that is more likely to be complete and utter _bullshit?"_

Zack was mildly shocked at hearing Rachel curse, it was a first and it sounded pretty weird... not that he would hate it in another occasion (Rachel cursing was both amusing and appealing to him) but while it was truly fun and random; it also had him twice as angry.

He snorted and narrowed his eyes dangerously, "I just told ya, Ray, there's no way in hell I'd follow the man. Why do you have to be so damn suspicious about everything?!"

"I'm being suspicious because you got yourself into this shady situation; I just want to help you... protect you..."

"I don't need your damn protection! Why would I want a kid like you to protect me?!"

"Because you're too naive!" Rachel snapped, "you only do what you please without considering the consequences! If I were to let you think for yourself even _once,_ you'll end up being taken advantage of!" She raised her hands in the air, "and here's the proof; a madman is now after you, after _us_."

"There's no 'proof' so quit your whining!" Zack shouted in frustration, "why would you even believe this little shit?! I thought we trusted eachother!" He pointed accusingly at the cowering man who had been staring at them for the longest time.

Rachel huffed and puffed in ways that made her look slightly less mature, "I'm not 'trusting' him, don't be ridiculous. I'm just assuming he's right because it would make more sense."

"Isn't that the same god-damn thing?!"

"No."

"Oh for fuck's sake..." He groaned and covered his face with both hands. "Give me a break! I didn't even remember everything!"

"There's no time for a break because the police is looking for us as we speak!" She reminded him.

"The cops are still at it too?!"

Rachel rolled her eyes, "Of course they are, they won't give up on capturing us over-night. We're on TV, newspapers, internet, secret files, and in wanted posters. You expect us to simply waltz around unnoticed?"

 _'When did she summon all that sass?'_ Zack briefly wondered before snorting, his thoughts switching direction completely.

Rachel looked at the serial killer with a raised brow the moment he stood up, "Where are you going? I'm not done cleaning your wounds."

"I'm tired of your bitching so I'm gonna' look for the love of my life." He explained with a holier-than-thou atittude. Rachel understood that the 'love of his life' was his scythe almost immediately.

"You'll look for it later! I need to make sure there's no more poison inside of-"

"I'm fine, completely fine, no poison or whatever. Here, look at me." He said as he stretched himself; showing her his flexibility. When he was done, he gave her the middle finger and walked away.

Rachel sighed and went after him.

"Zack, come back." She tried to sound like her usual, calm self, but it turned out to be a hard feat. "Zack, come on I need to finish what I started."

He turned around to mimick her with a deadpanned, girly voice; " _no._ "

Rachel's cheeks got red with anger, "you're making fun of me now, really?" Her face twisted into a rather odd expression that made the killer hold-back his laughter. "This is serious, very serious, and yet you're... you're..."

"Aww, what's wrong Ray? Did I hurt your little-girl feelings?" Zack said mockingly as he kneeled down, making her feel so much younger.

The blonde bit her lip, "I'm fourteen and a half, I'm not a little girl anymore."

He ruffled her hair with a grin, "sure, Ray, whatever you say."

Zack then resumed the search for his 'juliet' while seemingly enjoying Rachel's new updated anger. For the first time; he witnessed an open display of emotion on Rachel, and it was refreshing as _hell._ He gave himself a mental note to provoke her more often, have her turn into that lovely shade of red at least twice a week... even if that sounded selfish... and a paradox to his previous personal oath about angering her again.

But he would regret that. Actually, he regretted it already.

Because Rachel tackled him to the floor.

"Aghhh!" The killer yelled in pain, his face pressed firmly on the floor. "Bitch what the HELL?!"

Rachel had quickly taken advantage of his weakened state to tie both of his hands together with a belt.

"Stay still!" She hissed and sat on his back, trying to immobilize him. Zack wriggled like a worm while cursing at the pain all over his body.

"You think your puny arms can restrain me?!" He declared and twisted his body around so he could lay on his back. Rachel gasped and fell to the side; giving Zack an opportunity to crawl out of her reach. But the blonde was quicker to act as she grabbed another random belt and tied his legs with it.

"I'm trying to help you so stop moving!" She was practically straddling him, but both were too busy doing whatever to notice the awkwardness and absurdity of it all.

Zack glared at the petite girl with an intensity that would've made X-men's Cyclops jealous.

"I thought you were smarter than that, Ray." Zack remarked with a twist of the toungue, "to think you _actually_ believe that these could detain me... tsk."

Rachel stared at him wide-eyed as he quite easily teared the belt that tied his arms together into two. The material got thrown across the room almost immediately after; looking worthless and less fashionable.

Zack then proceeded to do the same for the belt that tied his legs together. It looked way too easy, but the blonde reminded herself that he wasn't normal either way.

When he finally got free; Zack grabbed Rachel by the hips and threw her over his head. She skillfully landed on all-fours like a cat, before readying herself to tackle him once more.

"This shit won't work again!" He declared with a prideful 'ah-hah!' As he dodged her attack swiftly. The teen took his small moment of triumph as an opportunity to try again; and whoop-dee-doo, she succeeded.

Both fell on the floor again and went back to square one.

Meanwhile, their captive figured he'd try to escape unnoticed...

Zack groaned loudly; his face slowly but surely becoming more intimate with their dusty wooden floor.

"Fuck you, Rachel." He cursed lamely with a muffled voice.

"Charming." She answered and started removing more of his bandages.

"I hate you, sick bitch."

"Mm, lovely."

"I wish you were dead."

"I wish for that too."

Zack cursed for the last time and decided to finally give up. His body felt so heavy, he had to admit that Rachel's caring would be much apreciated this time around.

However, his opinion quickly changed when he felt a pair of hands try to remove his red trousers-

"... Oi... What are you trying to do?" He asked slowly, not wanting to jump to conclusions just yet.

"I'm taking your pants off."

"I can see that, smartass, but _why._ "

"You have a bruise on your thigh and I can't roll your pants that far. So, I'm taking them off." Her answer was so blunt and simple that it irritated him.

The killer grabbed her hand quickly, "I'll be damned if I ever let you undress me, Ray!" He growled, feeling both embarassed and frustrated at her easygoing ways. Why did she have to make everything so awkward all the time? Didn't she know that he had his male pride?

"Let me remind you something; you're still weak from the drug's- or poison's effects. If this weren't the case, you could have easily thrown me across the room and ran off."

It was true, he still felt so weak. But even so, he doubted that it counted as a valid reason to strip him like that.

"And what are you planning to do?! Suck on the wound to get rid of the poison or whatever?" He spat with sarcasm.

"That's the plan actually."

Zack's face twisted in shock.

"Are you mental?! Fuck no, get off me!"

"You're wearing boxers, right?"

"Well yeah but-"

"Then what is the problem? I won't see anything so just let me do it!"

Zack panicked when her arm accidentally brushed his crotch, he did _not_ want to be humiliated or scarred for life anymore. There were so many shades of NOPE in this situation; one could tell Rachel's reasoning had some work to do.

So he yelled something resembling a battlecry, pushed the blonde aside, and straight up bolted.

Rachel gasped and attempted to stop him by throwing a shoe at the back of his head, it obviously didn't work.

"Wait! Stop!" She cried out and ran after the serial killer, who was heading for the door. "Zack!"

He didn't answer, nor did he look back. Zack had been dead on serious in escaping Rachel's clutches. That girl had some loose screws, she needed therapy for heaven's sake!

 _'Ho! There you are!'_ Zack thought with a grin when he finally found his scythe near the entrance. He took no time at all to grab it and flee, leaving a breathless Rachel to her thoughts.

She shouted after him; her voice echoring in the empty stairway. There was no answer... He had already left the building.

"Ugh..." the blonde groaned and sat on the floor, "dummy... you'll make it worse... so much worse."

She then caught sight of their captive in front of her; suspiciously on all fours and near the door.

"And what are you doing? Trying to escape, I presume?"

"I... no-"

"Get back in!" She threatened him by throwing a knife on the wall, not so far from his left eye. He nodded quickly and ran back into the apartment.

Rachel sighed, she had something else to worry about. But then again, this was Isaac Foster; her companion, the famous serial killer who had sworn to kill her.

"He'll be back... I'm sure of it." She muttered to herself quietly.

XxX

Meanwhile... In the nearby forest. Bigg's team came across several dead bodies, with a few holding strands of golden hair...


	11. Chapter 11

**I'm sorry for publishing this on so late! I uplaud chapters on wattpad before FF, so if you want to read as fast as possible—find me on wattpad! My username is iefery.**

 **Beginnings (Part IV)**

"So, Howard, now that Zack is gone... I believe it's time for us to continue our previous conversation." Rachel spoke, her foot tapping impatiently on the floor.

Howard looked up at the blonde while shaking tremendously; his face swollen and covered in bruises. What had once been a decent-looking man now resembled a deformed ghoul. Courtesy of Zack's fists.

He bit his lip; tasting the blood and dirt that lingered there, and swallowed hard.

"I don't have anything else to tell you..." he said with slight difficulty. "You know everything now."

Rachel tilted her head and tried to see if he was telling the truth. Her dark blue eyes stared deep into his green ones; seeking for a flicker of something. It had become second-nature for her to decipher human emotion- and she could quite easily tell when someone was anxious.

It was clear that their captive; Howard, was not telling her the truth.

When she had killed all of his comrades six hours ago, it had been all for the sake of protecting Zack at first. A survival instinct, if you could call it that. He had been mortified at the time and spilled nonsense in hopes that she would be gullible enough. Sadly, it did not work.

So by means of precaution, she threatened him and forced him to drive them back. And now, he was their captive.

But he wasn't cooperative.

"I'd like it if you were a bit more honest with me." Rachel said with a menacing glare, "that load of rubbish you spilled in the forest, it didn't work on me."

Howard bit his lip, obviously thinking intensely. "I... may have left some details out, but it was the truth. I _am_ part of an organization, and yes, we have been ordered to track Isaac but..."

He looked up with pleading eyes, "saying any more would kill me. So please, try to understand..."

Rachel pulled out her gun and pointed it roughly on his temple.

"No, _you_ try to understand." The blonde glared, "We are being constantly followed, threatened, and stalked by not only the police- but also a bunch of hoodlums who pretend they're part of some secret organization. And for what? _Justice?_ "

She pushed the cold end of her gun further into his temple, making him twitch in fear.

"All I ever wanted was to die by Zack's blade, and you people are making it harder for him to accomplish that task." She whispered, her eyes appearing darker than before. Howard was left both dumbfounded and speechless at her words, who on earth was that crazy girl, and why didn't he get more info on her?

With a shaky sigh; he decided.

"Okay... I'll tell you, but you must give me something in return."

XxX

"Damn that crazy bitch... Tryna' make me feel less like a man." Zack muttered to himself before spitting on the ground, his scythe carefully close to his burnt skin. She had taken most of his bandages off, and now he felt vulnerable somehow; with his scars visible to the world.

He sighed and kicked a random can on the ground, surveying the area for cops just in case. The situation had gotten so messy, he didn't quite know what to think about it. What Rachel had told him repeated itself in his mind, and he began to wonder if his fuzzy memories were really accurate.

It was a shitty week, to say the least. But not the worst he had experienced.

He hadn't been burned alive this time around.

 _Hm? Smells funny..._ Zack thought suddenly as he sniffed the air. He briefly looked down at himself, wondering if he was finally starting to smell bad; but then realized that the scent he had caught wasn't of body odor.

 _I feel like a friggin' dog._ He thought in disgust at himself as he took more whiffs just to find out exactly what smelled so... odd. It was a mixture of blood and something else, something he couldn't quite decipher. It was dreadfully familiar.

"God damn it, what is this?" He thought, frustrated, as he sniffed and followed some kind of lead. The scent got stronger when he got closer to the underground parking lot, making him grow more suspicious.

Ever since they had found the abandoned apartment building and made it their home; Zack had never stepped foot in the parking lot, for reasons. The first reason: it smelled like shit. Second reason: it smelled like shit.

Oh, and there would be no benefit in going in there.

 _But something's different now._ He rubbed the edge of his nose and went in, not minding the intense darkness. There was a power generator somewhere, he just had to find it-

 _Ho, there we go._ He thought and turned the switch on, lighting up the whole space. What greeted him were a few abandoned cars, some dead rats, and questionable brown stains on the wall.

"Okay, that's blood." The killer pointed out to no one particularly, sensing a presence somewhere nearby. Some cockroaches made way for him as he got closer to the dusty old cars, which dated from god knows when. The same brown stains were on the cars, and Zack wondered for the briefest moment if there was a dead body in there.

He curiously pulled at the car door handle-

It didn't open.

So he shrugged and just punched the glass hard enough for it to break-

Not a wise decision.

"Oh, shi- **COUGH!** " He started coughing and wheezing, the smell of death invading his nostrils and making him feel nauseous as hell. Whatever died inside died long ago, but not long enough for it to _fully_ decompose.

"Sick! Blegh!" He backed away while covering his nose, feeling disgusted beyond imagination. When did _that_ happen?! He was pretty sure that no one had come during the few months he and Ray lived in the apartment. Had he been careless? Did someone slip right under his nose?

"Who the heck died anyway?" He muttered curiously and peered inside the car while pinching his nose. There was indeed a body, but that one had its face blown off and deformed by a bullet. He could tell that it was a male though, but that was it.

"Yuck, what a messy job. I could have killed ya better." Zack spoke to the corpse, pitying him for a moment. "Shame we didn't cross paths."

He backed away from the car and finally breathed normally again. The stench was still there, but he gradually got used to it. He didn't have much of an idea why the random victim got killed; or who did it, but something itched in the back of his mind..

Just what was it that felt so familiar?

"Why am I thinking so much? How creepy." He shook his head to regain his senses. While he did find a corpse, the stench that emitted from it wasn't the smell that he had initially caught. There was something else around, something fishy and suspicious.

The killer looked to his right, there was an elevator that seemed to be out of service. He grimaced at it, remembering all the crazy insane shit he and Rachel had to go through solving puzzles on every floors etc etc...

But Zack felt like the smell was stronger over there.

So he simply made his way.

And found the unexpected.

 **To be continued...**


	12. Chapter 12

**Beginnings (Final)**

Zack blinked.

He rubbed his eyes...

Then blinked again.

"No fucking way. This can't be real." He whispered, there has to be some kind of mistake. Maybe his memory was bad, maybe he really had trouble rememberin' stuff correctly. As an illiterate individual, he had to be wrong.

Or he was hallucinating.

There, right on the elevator door; were a letter and a number written in blood.

A very familiar letter & number.

B6

 _Is this the skizz-o-phronya Ray talks about?_ Zack thought with a chill, _Am I finally going crazy? No wait... I'm already crazy._

Maybe his mental state did take a turn for the worst, and now he was hallucinating for real. Maybe he hadn't killed in a while, maybe...

Of all things...

"The fuuuuck?" The killer gritted his teeth and licked his thumb, trying to erase the blood on the elevator door. It barely did anything; in fact it only helped the color turn somewhat darker, richer. Zack suspected that it was really just his mind playing tricks on him. He needed to lay down.

"But the smell's way stronger on the other side." He remarked as he sniffed something near the door. Whatever could be in there reeked of chemicals and whatnot. It was so suspicious that his sixth sense practically tingled him all over, telling him that something was wrong-

But who was he to give a fuck anyway?

"Meh, stupid." He muttered and swung his scythe. "I got poisoned so that shit probably took a toll on me. Whatever."

He walked towards the exit, trying to dismiss his conscience (or what remained of it anyway). He didn't feel like seeing Rachel anytime soon, especially after... what she had tried to do with his pants. And masculinity. Staying with that living doll was too much for him sometimes, he needed some fresh air and gore to feel like himself again.

More importantly, he needed to destroy something...

No wait, he really really _reaaaalllyyy_ wanted to smash something into a million little pieces.

... He halted.

Then slowly turned to stare at the row of abandoned cars.

His lips curved into a very sly grin.

XxX

"So what is it that you want in exchange for information?" Rachel asked Howard patiently, lowering her gun for a short period of time. Being civil was a requirement, but an optional one. If her hostage started getting too comfortable, things wouldn't end up looking good for him.

So she took her sweet time in interrogating him. He didn't need to know that ultimately, she'd have to kill him in the end-

That part was a little secret.

Howard sighed and leaned on the wall, his hands bound by a rope. "If I tell you more about our organization, I'll die. So what I'm asking for is your protection."

Rachel raised an eyebrow.

"My protection?" She repeated, deadpanned.

He nodded, "If you and Isaac Foster protect me, I promise to tell you everything."

Rachel crossed her arms, "you do realize that it would be pointless protecting you _after_ you give us the information, right?"

Howard snorted, "I'm not dumb, I know that you'll kill me after you get what you want. But believe me, I could be far more useful than you think..."

"Go on?"

"You see, I have access to things that could benefit you both. If you rely on me, and more importantly- _trust_ me, I'll help you and Isaac flee without any trouble."

This sounded too good to be true, especially with their current circumstances.

Howard was definitely trying to fool her.

But she will fool him back.

"... Alright, so you say that you'll be of use to us... if we protect you from this organization... right?"

He nodded, "that's correct."

"Very well. I'm listening." Rachel said as she calmly sat down on a chair, ready to take in and analyze whatever he's willing to say.

Howard looked up at the ceiling in mild thought, "Well now, where should I begin? Ah, right. You wish to know the reason why we're tracking you both."

"Yes. But before that, is what you said true? About Zack following your boss..."

"That part is correct. I was not lying!"

Figures, she felt like he hadn't lied on that part (hence her little outburst with Zack a few moments ago) but something didn't really add up. A lack of info.

"Alright then, I believe you. Go on and tell me more." She sat down on a vacant chair and waited for him to start.

He took a deep breath and began.

"First of all, I'd like to say that our organization never really wanted to harm both of you. Our goal was to catch Isaac Foster, but it kind of went off track after we realized how hard it could be..."

Naturally.

"We wanted him for reasons. The boss has a tendency to recruit serial killers and murderers- for goals unknown. The pay is good, but we are kept in the dark from the boss's affairs. We never questioned it though.

"What we _do_ know is that our Boss is a cultist who was previously affiliated with Abraham Gray."

Rachel's heart nearly stopped at that revelation. After spending so much time living peacefully with Zack; the mention of such a name had her go rigid from shock.

Howard continued, "Both you and Isaac have been under constant surveillance from our Boss's part. He has... uh, 'studied' both of your behaviors ever since Zack's escape from prison. About two different teams take turns each week to monetize the serial killer's routines. My team was in charge of that... but I guess... not anymore." He muttered and stared at her, still somewhat afraid of what she could do. Rachel pursed her lips and tapped her foot impatiently on the floor, Howard understood and kept on. "Recently, after our boss met with Isaac, he ordered us to track him again and bring him to our facility."

Rachel frowned, "your facility?"

"Yes."

She didn't like that word. It triggered memories.

"I honestly don't know the _true_ reason behind all of this. All I am aware of is that the boss considers both of you to be his trump cards. He refers to you as angels..."

She snorted, "ridiculous."

"The plan from the get-go was to get Isaac to join, and only him. And yet whenever he talks about him, he mentions you as well. It's as if he considers you to be a part of him."

Rachel felt slightly surprised at Howard's little comment, but didn't show it on her expression.

"But at the same time... he didn't tell us much about you. So what happened earlier was a... shock."

She decided to change subjects and make him spill out some more info.

"Where is this... facility?" She asked, curious. Howard looked at the floor pointedly.

"Underground."

"Underground... you say."

"Yeah. It's the best way to remain hidden, especially since we keep fugitives under our watch."

It still seemed far too weird to be true, but he didn't appear to be lying so she trusted him.

An underground facility was convenient in more ways than one.

"How can you access it?"

"Well... in plenty of ways. There are secret entrances everywhere in the city. It's hard to find them, plus you need a pass."

"Is there one nearby?" She asked calmly.

"Yeah. Right here actually."

"What?"

Howard shifted uncomfortably, "there's a parking lot here and-"

 ***CRASH***

Rachel blinked at the loud noise coming from below.

"What the-"

 ***CRASH* *CRASH* *CRASH***

Panic rushed through her as multiple more crashing and breaking sounds emitted from downstairs. Her first thought was that somebody had come and found them; be it the police or Howard's shitty organization. She was about to strategically think of a way to get rid of whoever came for their heads- until a familiar series of hysterical laughter stopped her.

 _"HAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHA! AW MAN! FEELS GOOOOD!~"_

Howard froze on the spot, "is that..?"

"... Yes." Rachel rolled her eyes slightly. "It's Zack."

"Y-you better tell him to stop making so much noise or else the police will-"

"Stop nagging, I got this." The blonde spoke and pulled Howard up, "Come with me, I'm not leaving you alone."

Howard felt a chill, "I'd rather you tie me up somewhere."

"I'd rather you come with me and spill some info for Zack." She said as she pulled him towards the stairs.

"I'd rather not talk to him after what he did to my face."

"You don't have a say in this." She finally snapped and took him. God knows what that man had in plan.

XxX

Upon following the ruckus; Rachel and Howard found themselves in the parking lot where a series of cars had been smashed by the killer. The blonde noticed the blood on the walls and had a good whiff of the pungent smell.

She recognized the smell of death immediately. Of decay.

She didn't want to stay there far too long.

"Zack." Rachel called out, her voice barely audible with his laughter in the background. "Zack!"

"He can't hear you. Let's go ba-"

"ZACK!"

The serial killer stopped and turned around at the sound of Rachel's voice. Her loud shout was so surprising that he had snapped back to reality.

"Ray, the hell-" he began talking, but got interrupted.

"What's wrong with you? What's with all that noise?" She snapped, looking slightly angry again. Jesus she was beginning to feel like a different person after each passing day.

"I'm just relieving myself from all the stress! Can't you see?" He snapped back.

The blonde bit her lip.

"Are you okay in the head? Did you think twice before making this much ruckus? What if someone heard you? What if the police is nearby? What if-"

"Leave me alone, you fucking bitch! One moment you emasculate me, and in the next you make me feel like a dumb cunt! The hell is your problem?! Let me be!"

Zack had been mildly surprised at his use of the word 'emasculate'. He never believed himself capable to remember a complicated word from Rachel, but here we are. Seems like there's a beginning to everything, after all.

But that didn't change the fact that he was pissed!

"What's this now? You're mad at me?" She asked him as she crossed her arms. Okay, this was getting weird.

When did Rachel start looking like a nagging wife?

"Uh, scuse me? Who's the lil' girl who came here tryna' pick a fight?"

Howard slowly took a few steps back, afraid of the killer. Then, something caught his eye...

"I'm not trying to pick a fight! And I'm not a little girl... anymore."

Howard blinked, was that an entrance to the underground?

"Awww what's this? Lil' Ray is pouting? How cute." Zack mockingly got closer to pinch her cheeks. It was irritating how he easily figured out her weaknesses.

"... do you have a death wish?"

"Whazzat about death wishes, Ray? Last time I checked, that was more your thing."

"You're annoying." She sneered for the first time ever, and Zack laughed at how baby-ish she looked. This prompted him to pinch her cheeks again, until something caught his eye.

Sneaky Howard trying to do something weird with the hallucination-elevator-thingy.

"Oh fuck-" The killer cursed as he ran towards their ex-captive. Rachel gasped and followed suit, not believing her carelessness.

"W-wait I'm just trying to open it!" Howard shook his arms defensively. Zack didn't let him have it though and threw his scythe, aiming for the poor man's head. He miraculously dodged it in time.

"Zack, hold on!" Rachel stopped him by grabbing his shirt. "We've been talking so far and-"

"And what? You wanna trust this guy? For fuck's sake, Rachel! This is gonna be one hell of a mistake, believe me! He just sneaked past us and you expect me to let him ALIVE?!"

 **Ding!**

Just as he finished his sentence did the elevator door open for them; the light illuminating all of their faces.

Howard, who had ducked down to avoid getting decapitated; stared at the entrance like it were the gate towards heaven.

"Oh thank god." He whispered and stood up, staring at the killer and his companion with a promising look. "S-see? I didn't lie! I can be useful to you both."

Zack looked skeptical.

"The hell? So I wasn't hallucinating?" He thought while scratching his head. Was the 'B6' written in blood real too? Or did he imagine that?

"Howard, is this..."

"Yes, this elevator will take us to our underground facility." He confirmed her thoughts. "And... it'll take us directly towards our leader."

The killer looked at both Rachel and Howard with confusion and shock.

"What's he talking about?"

The blonde blinked a few times. She had to think things through, and carefully. What were the best options? Remain there and confront the police... or straight up charge towards a new enemy/possible ally?

She knew that they wanted Zack alive. But what about her?

Would they kill her?

"... Hm."

Howard fidgeted on the spot.

And Zack was beginning to lose patience.

"Ray!"

 _We'll have to risk this._

She confidently grabbed Zack's hand.

"Trust me on this, okay?" She said and pulled him towards the elevator.

Zack's mismatched eyes widened.

Lots of things were beginning to change, and Rachel was part of em'.

 **To be continued...**


	13. Chapter 13

**Police Talk**

"I don't think the guy's a pedophile."

Biggs looked up to stare at his colleague, eyeing him carefully as he chewed on his hamburger. They had stopped to have dinner at a fast food, taking a small break from their search.

"You don't 'think'?" Biggs asked, then shook his head. "Come on, be smart. Why would a psychopath abduct and keep a young under-aged girl alive for such a long time? To gain pleasure from her, of course."

The officer; Roy, shrugged and looked out the window. "Yeah I mean... It doesn't seem to be the case, y'know? When I saw them yesterday, it felt..."

Biggs raised an eyebrow, waiting for Roy's answer.

The younger man just shrugged, "I don't know. It's hard to explain... but whenever I look at those two, I feel a connection, some kind of dynamic! The kind you see in movies, a hero and his side-kick! There's chemistry in there-"

"Chemistry?! The romantic kind?" Biggs interrupted him in horror.

"No!" Roy immediately shook his head at that, "I didn't mean it that way, that's just sick! I meant it as in... oh god what am I thinking?"

"This case has clearly made you go nuts, pal. I think you need something a bit more stronger than that coke..." Biggs said as he pulled out a bottle of whiskey from his bag. Roy looked at it as if it was evil.

"We're on duty, if i recall."

"No we're not, we're having a well-earned break."

"Are we really?"

"Yes."

They had found plenty of evidence earlier that day. Though the corpses in the forest were unexpected- the trail of blonde hair left behind was enough proof that Rachel Gardner was at the crime scene, and possibly Isaac foster too.

They probably really deserved their break.

Roy looked at the bottle for a full minute, then gave Biggs his cup with a sheepish smile.

"I guess it wouldn't hurt to do this once in a while, then."

 **Half an hour later...**

"Oh man, I fucking hate this world, I swear to god I feel like I'm gonna puke my lungs out if they ever gimme' a case like this again." Biggs muttered as he took another sip of alcohol, his eyes getting droopy from all the booze. "Chasin' after that creepy punk, savin a lil' girl with stockholm syndrome... tis' all really shady an' weird an' creepy an' icky. Blegh."

"I feel ya, bro." Roy nodded in agreement, his cheeks flushed red. He was clearly drunk too. "But wait, stockholm syndrome? She hazzit?"

"Yea, why else would she stick to him and aid him like that, she got brainwashed."

"Poor lil' thing."

"Am tellin' ya he evil, evil I say! Gotta' castrate him."

"Castrate, yes."

"Gotta' throw him in jail and have him drop the soap..."

"Drop the soap, yeah."

"Am gonna havta' strangle em'."

"Strangulation sounds cool. That illegal tho."

"Yea, sad."

"Think he been grooming her?" Roy asked lazily.

"As in sexually?" Biggs furrowed his brows.

"Yeah."

"Probably."

"Wow, sick. Doesn't surprise me though."

"Neither'."

"How are things with the missus?" Roy then asked while twirling a strand of his curly blonde hair.

"As unexciting as they can be."

"Ever thought of roleplaying?"

Biggs snorted, "Who do you take me for? Course' we have. Except I'm a lil' offended she prefers the mailman outfit instead of my police uniform."

"Prob considerate. Doesn't wanna' wash the woohoo away all the time."

Biggs chuckled.

"What about you? Any women?"

Roy shyly looked around, "mhm, fiancée."

"She pretty?"

"Beautiful."

"Done it yet?"

"No, she... well she is religious. Didna' want to lose it before marriage."

"When's the weddin'?"

"Next year."

"You poor soul."

"I'm patient."

"Not talkin' to ya', am talkin to little johnny over here." He pointed with his chin at the direction of Roy's crotch.

"Oh... ya. It's hard on his end... Literally."

"Hah, I bet."

Suddenly, they heard a buzz from somewhere.

 _"... Officer Biggs... do you copy? Over."_

"Sir I think its tha' walkie talkie." Roy pointed out. Biggs took his device and answered in mild panic, trying to sound... normal.

"Yes, this is Biggs here. Over."

 _"We have a lead, come at the station near the forest. Over."_

Biggs's eyes widened. He was in deep shit, that station was a good 1 hour drive away.

"I... Roger that."

The short conversation ended after a few seconds, and Biggs turned to stare at his colleague with odd eyes.

"We gotta' go, Roy. Move."

The slightly younger man blinked in wonder.

"Huh? Where to?" He asked.

"That gas station near the forest, we gotta' move." Biggs said and ran out of the restaurant, making sure to toss a few dollar bills towards the waiter. Roy followed behind with a surprised look, staring at their car as if it was hell itself.

"How you gonna' drive?" He asked innocently. Biggs snorted.

"I ain't driving. You drive."

"I can't I'm drunk."

"I'm drunkier. Put your seatbelt on and let's go."

The man mumbled a few inaudible curses before getting on the driver's seat. His movements slow and clumsy. He started the engine and went on reverse- the car hit something immediately after.

Roy panicked. "What was that?!"

"Just a squirrel, you're fine so move it!"

"Oh god is it dead?!"

"No it's fine, it probably can't climb trees anymore though."

"This is all your fault!" Roy suddenly snapped.

"How is it my fault?!"

"If you didn't get us drunk the squirrel would have been fine!"

"You agreed to drink so it's also your fault!"

"Consent isn't valid when drunk."

"You were sober, jackass!"

"I-" he stepped on the pedal, forgetting that he was still on reverse. The car went further down; now fully crushing on something.

Biggs turned, opened the door and stared at the back wheels. He looked at the small poodle of blood and the fleshy little paw sticking out.

"Oh yea, the squirrel is definitely gone now. Good job. Now go on and get rid of it cause' we can't quite drive off with that stuck."

Roy sobbed as he silently exited the vehicle to clean off the gore from the wheels. Another death to feel bad about.


End file.
